Soul's Refuge
by Sereven
Summary: He was the precious chosen one. The one they protected at all cost. She was his older sibling, the one they gave away. Both of them have a destiny, far greater than anyone could have forseen. But will the siblings unite or be torn apart by the society they live in? The hero of the light and a daughter of the pure blood society that rules their world. AU fem!Harry
1. Chapter 1

**Hiho.**

**Today I present you a story from a very close friend of me. Some might remember Thaedys, well he left FF more than a month ago and deleted all his stories. But after some arguing I at least convinced him to allow me to reupload some of his stories. This is one of the stories he has written. Maybe he will write new chapter or I will finish it, we are not sure yet, but at least we want to give this story back to the readers on this site.**

**It is an extremely AU storyline with a female Harry as the main protagonist, together with some OCs. We know that not many like such stories with an OC cast, but stories with the canon characters have been done again and again, so people tend to repeat stuff others have made before. Anyway, have fun reading this, I will upload the next chapter tomorrow, if I have the time to do so...**

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Chapter 1: Rhiannon

Twelve year old Rhiannon Potter sat quietly in a secluded corner of her great-aunt's ballroom, watching all the assembled guests, as they danced or talked in small groups, sharing the latest pure blood gossip or simply mingled with their social peers. It had been nearly ten years now since Rhiannon's parents had sent her to live with her great-aunt, Dorea Potter. Despite the animosity between James Potter and his last living family, it had been clear that this was the only place for Rhiannon to stay. Her mother's relatives were out of question and Charlus and Dorea Potter would have used every method available to keep a Potter child out the hands of muggles either way. Half blood or not, Rhiannon deserved better in their opinion and was raised by them in the ways a child of her standing should be brought up.

But for Rhiannon this also meant growing up without any real friends. All her life up to this point was filled with either lessons in proper pure blood decorum and magical studies or meaningless parties and gatherings. Even this ball, despite it being in honor of her twelfth birthday, was a dreadful affair for her. She barely knew even half of the guests. Most of them were old enough to be her parents or even grandparents, and those few guests that actually were her own age acted so aloof that Rhiannon found it painful to speak with them longer then courtesy dictates.

She sighed as she saw her aunt approach with her carefully indifferent facial expression, making it impossible for Rhiannon to even remotely guess whether she was in trouble or not. It was obvious that distancing herself from her own party was not … proper and Dorea Potter would probably upbraid her for such behavior.

"Rhiannon, dear, why are you sitting here all glumly? Your guests are hoping for a chance to interact with you and you hide yourself all evening. Are you feeling unwell?"

"No, Aunt Dorea, I simply... needed some time to collect my thoughts." Rhiannon said with a neutral voice, before she stood up to follow her aunt back to the guests.

"I understand that you dislike these kind of gatherings, but they are necessary in our circles. I thought we had talked about this before!" Dorea admonished her niece.

"Forgive me, Aunt Dorea. I will try to follow your teachings more closely in the future." Rhiannon conceded, but inwardly she groaned, knowing that she would hear more of this once the guests had left.

"Good. Now be a nice girl and show your good upbringing, we will talk to our guests from the Black family. I do not need to stress how important they are."

At this Rhiannon perked up, looking at her great-aunt. "Sirius has actually come this year?" She asked, careful not to sound too surprised. She had not seen her father's best friend in many years, neither has she ever met his children. A part of her still felt betrayed by the knowledge that Sirius had given up on her so easily just because he did not want to face a member of his own family.

"No, Rhiannon. Sirius has made the decision to abandon his family long ago. He will never be accepted in our circles. Our guest is the new Lord Black, Regulus Black and his wife and children. Behave, it has been a long time since the young Lord has attended any social gatherings. That ours is the first he attends after his absence is an honor, do not forget that." Dorea's voice lost all warmth for the moment she spoke about Sirius. Because she was a daughter of the Black family, Dorea had never forgiven Sirius for abandoning his duty to his family, all for his petty teenage crisis, as all Blacks had come to call his betrayal.

No more words were spoken until they had reached the small group consisting of Blacks. Regulus Black looked as imposing as Rhiannon's aunt had described him many times before. His black hair cut short, his gray eyes cold and uncaring, he was the very definition of what people expected the head of the Black family to be like. His wife, Cecilia Black nee Selwyn, was a stark contrast to her husband, both in looks and demeanor. Her shoulder length golden hair, her warm brown eyes and the almost constant smile she wore all contributed to allusion that she is a friendly, much more approachable person, but it was also clear that this was most likely a mask she wore in public. The real Cecilia Black was only to be known by her family. Their sons Aries and Leo were both carbon copies of their father in looks, except for their hair color which they got from their mother.

"Ah Lord Black, may I introduce my niece, Rhiannon." While she said that, Dorea pushed Rhiannon slightly in front of her to present her to their influential guests. Following pure blood protocol, Rhiannon curtsied before the Lord and his family.

Regulus Black scrutinized the twelve year old girl silently for nearly a minute, much to Rhiannon's growing discomfort. When he finally spoke, Rhiannon was hard pressed not to jump from the sudden surprise.

"You have turned her into a fine young lady, Aunt Dorea. As it seems proper upbringing can overcome even such flaws as ones own blood in some special cases." Regulus spoke imperiously, his gaze never leaving Rhiannon.

She knew that he meant her muggleborn mother, when he talked about her flaw. From the very beginning of her interaction with the social circles her great-aunt frequented, Rhiannon had been judged as unworthy because of what her mother is, but years of tenacity and proving that she had the proper upbringing, finally won over most of the pure bloods, earning her a place among their circles. Rhiannon had no illusions that she had to thank her great-aunt and her considerable influence for that; had she stayed with her birth family, she would have remained an outcast to those people. Though whether it was good for her to be accepted in these pure blood circles or not, was a question that she did not know an answer for.

"Yes, she is a very well mannered and intelligent. One of the brightest students of her year. We have all reason to be proud of her." Dorea said with a small smile.

"Ah yes, you are in House Ravenclaw are you not?" Regulus asked. When Rhiannon nodded he continued. "Yes, Ravenclaw is a good house for any pure blood child, not as good as Slytherin, but still a good house. My eldest son is a Slytherin of course and I am sure that Leo will follow him when it is his time in two years. You know my son Aries, do you not?"

"Only from the sorting, Lord Black. Interaction with House Slytherin is discouraged by the school administration. The teachers take the run for the House Cup very seriously and don't want their students to get involved with the fights between Slytherin and Gryffindor, where we would only loose house points." Rhiannon replied evenly, looking at Aries Black while she said that.

"Ah yes, the house rivalry. I remember it from my own time as a student at that school. Some houses wouldn't even meet without a fight." Regulus let out a small laugh after that. "I remember the rivalry between Slytherin and Gryffindor was always very serious. But that they even keep Ravenclaws from interacting... the school is really turning worse every year."

"As I said, we are discouraged to interact with students outside our own houses and especially those who openly interact with Slytherins are under close scrutiny from the headmaster. It is kind of oppressive sometimes. We are not punished for interacting, but the rumors that spread are often reason enough to think twice about such actions."

"Rumors?" Regulus asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes, father. They mostly come from the Gryffindors. They really have the foulest imagination possible. Interact with a Slytherin and you are a Death Eater, wear the wrong color during a Quidditch match and you must be a traitor … It is quite unnerving what they come up with." Aries spoke with a hint of disdain in his voice.

"Ah yes. Such things are unpleasant I admit. I should bring this problem to the attention of the Board of Governors, the next time I meet with Lucius." Regulus said with a contemplative expression. "But enough about that school. Aries, why don't you be a gentleman and dance with Ms Potter."

"Oh I am sure she would be delighted." Dorea interjected with a happy smile.

"Of course, father. Ms Potter, may I have this dance?" Aries asked with an offered hand, all following proper decorum. Rhiannon just nodded and placed her hand in his, letting him lead her away from the adults and his younger brother.

Regulus watched his son and Rhiannon dance for some time, his wife using the time to chat with Dorea. When he finally rejoined the conversation, he sported a very pleased expression.

"They do make a charming couple." He commented offhandedly.

This caused Dorea to smile equally pleased like him. She knew exactly what such words could mean for Rhiannon's future. "Yes, they would be quite a good match."

"There are only very few suitable girls in Aries age group, most are either to closely related for comfort or they have more obvious flaws that make them less acceptable."

"I have spent many years grooming Rhiannon to be perfectly suitable to any kind of pure blood husband. She is pretty, intelligent and well mannered, a fine addition to any family." Dorea gushed obviously pleased with herself.

"Of course, but there still is that flaw with her blood status, but that can be overlooked should she pass the other requirements. She is from an old family after all. But there are still some younger girls in consideration that would be a good match for Aries, alas they are less well established in our circles due to their parents reluctance to bring them to gatherings like this."

"They are still very young, Regulus. Give them some time before you go and decide their future. They might even fall for each other if you keep the burden of a marriage contract out of their lives for some more years and you know personally how much preferable it is to have a marriage when both partners love each other." Regulus wife spoke with a soft voice, her hand on her husband's arm.

"Maybe you are right, Cecilia. But I still keep my eyes open for any promising prospects." He softly patted his wife's hand before he turned back to Dorea. "We will still keep this match in mind, Aunt Dorea. I believe that your young ward might be the only viable choice for my son. We should at least encourage them to spend their time at school together, children of their standing should not work against each other like that house rivalry promotes."

"Not to mention that it would displease your brother greatly, especially seeing Rhiannon promised to your son would make him raving mad." Dorea added with a malicious smile.

"Yes, that as well." Regulus admitted freely. "I would also prefer it just to spite my traitorous brother. Surely he must have similar plans for her concerning his own son. So please inform me, should there be any other offers for Rhiannon's hand."

"Don't worry about this, Regulus. Rhiannon's legal guardianship lies with us. My foolish nephew transferred it to us before he went into hiding with his beloved son. Not even Dumbledore himself can meddle with this, no matter how hard he would try. So it is upon us to choose a suitable match for her."

"Good to hear. But I really don't want to hear the name of that meddling old man more than necessary, so let us change the topic for now. Tell me, Aunt Dorea, how is your son doing these days?" Regulus asked with a jovial expression.

"Ah the usual. He is still in Egypt, researching ancient Egyptian runes with his wife. He has always been so immersed in his pursuit of knowledge, I really wish he would finally settle down, he will soon be thirty-five, there is no time to lose when you wish for a family. He and his wife should think about having a child of their own soon." Dorea said with melancholy.

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On the dance floor Rhiannon and Aries slowly followed the music, both not all that keen on dancing at all. But they knew that they were observed by their families. At least with someone her own age Rhiannon felt a bit less oppressed and dared show more of her real personality.

"So, would you be willing to spite the rumor mill of Hogwarts and actually dare interact more with Slytherins. You know that my parents and your guardians probably expect us to do so from now on." Aries asked with an impish smile.

"And risking eternal blindness caused by the old man's twinkling eyes focused on me? I really have to think this over." Rhiannon replied with a cat like smirk.

"Don't worry, Dumbledore will have other things to do this year. Don't forget his precious chosen one will start Hogwarts this year. What we other mere mortals do will be completely irrelevant as long as we do nothing to endanger Evan Potter."

"Don't remind me." Rhiannon said with a small groan. "I am glad that they have not tried to contact me so far. I don't even want to be related to them in any way, not with this insanity that will happen, just because the oh so great child-of-prophecy comes to Hogwarts."

"Not all that happy to meet your family again?" Aries asked carefully.

"I am better off without them. Aunt Dorea and Uncle Charlus gave me everything I need and taught me all the things that I am expected to know. Without them I wouldn't even be here. For whatever reason my birth parents gave me away, I should actually thank them. But go back to them? No way." Rhiannon said with finality.

"Good. This means you won't be gallivanting around with Gryffindors this year." Aries stated with a self-assured expression on his face.

"I do not gallivant, neither will I interact with Dumbledore's lackeys more than necessary." Rhiannon told him with a haughty tone. "And aren't you the hypocrite here? After all it will be your cousins that start this year as well. What will you do when they are sorted into that awful house?"

Aries simply chuckled when he heard her words. "Oh don't worry about that. Cousin Draco will be a Slytherin alright. And I have no intention to interact with the children of our family traitor at all. So you see, no problems at all."

"I haven't heard anything about Sirius children since the last chance his mother gave him to reconcile with the family. But that was nearly six years ago, during that family gathering. But can you really blame them for their father's stubborn idiocy?"

"We will see." Aries said with a dismissive gesture. "But what interest me more is whether you will answer my question or not. Will I get to see more of you in our second year or will you hide yourself in the library again?"

"You will have to wait and see." Rhiannon said a small smile. She really had no answer to that at the moment. Would it be worth the hassle? She did not even know what would happen with the family issues she had at the moment. She too would have to wait and see. But knowing her great-aunt, Dorea Potter would most likely insist on further contact with Aries, if she hadn't already signed a contract while they had danced.

The current song ended soon and Aries lead Rhiannon back to her great-aunt, who was now in a discussion with his mother and Narcissa Malfoy. His father had already moved on to his political contemporaries. Aries quickly excused himself, not in the mood to listen to the women gossip, so he went off to find his younger brother.

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James Potter was a happy man these days. After nearly ten years in hiding, he and his family had finally returned to the wizarding world. His son was old enough to start Hogwarts for the new term that would begin in a few weeks. This would also mean for them to finally get their daughter back. He never really liked the idea to leave her with his relatives, but Dumbledore was insistent that she would have a happier childhood this way. But even the great Albus Dumbledore could not have expected that Dorea Potter would interfere here and take the girl under her wing. They had planned to allow Rhiannon to grow up in the muggle world, where the Potter name was unknown, but the current Potter matriarch would have none of it, threatening them with all the power she could wield through her connection to the Black family. Dorea was repulsed by the mere idea to send a Potter child to live with muggles and in the end she gained full custody of Rhiannon, much to James chagrin. But now they were back and Rhiannon would live with them once more.

James sat in the office of Albus Dumbledore, waiting impatiently for his aunt to arrive so he could finally get his child back. Albus had graciously offered to act as an intermediary, since they both knew that Dorea Potter would not let the girl go easily.

"As always that woman is late... I should have expected this." James commented with annoyance.

"Fashionable late, as to be expected of a woman of her standing. Don't forget she is one of the proper pure blood ladies, James. She does not wait for people, people wait for her. Just one of those many nonsensical pure blood customs and mannerisms." The old wizard said with a small smile. He had to interact with pure bloods every day due to his political positions and by now he was accustomed to their habits. But that didn't mean that he would not try to abolish one or two of the more insane customs.

They waited a few more minutes before Dorea Potter nee Black arrived via floo in the office of Hogwarts' headmaster. But much to James anger she came alone, no sign that Rhiannon would join them in this meeting. This was not good, this would mean that Dorea was probably hellbent on keeping Rhiannon.

"Ah, Lady Potter, how gracious of you to join us this evening." Albus greeted the stern woman friendly, careful not to offend her before they even started talking. "Please, have a seat."

Without a word Dorea sat down in the offered chair, keeping as much distance between herself and James as possible with the seating arrangement. Her facial expression made it clear to the two wizards, that she was not amused and most likely knew why they had requested her to come.

"As you can probably expect I have asked you to meet me this evening to talk about your ward, Rhiannon Potter. You see that James and his family have finally come out of hiding so Evan can attend Hogwarts this coming year. Henceforth it is also the time for Rhiannon to return to her birth family." Albus said as diplomatic as he could.

"Assume whatever you want, but Rhiannon is my ward and will remain with me and my husband until she is of age. It would do the girl no good to rip her from the environment she has known for all her life." Dorea replied haughtily.

"Rhiannon is my daughter and it is up to me and my wife to decide where she should grow up. You have probably tried to corrupt her to fit her into your pure blood circles, that is not the way of life we want for our daughter." James said tensely.

"It took me nearly a decade to establish her position within the circles our family used to frequent in the past. I won't let you destroy all I have worked for just because of your stubborn rejection of our society."

"That is not they way of life I want for my children. All that falsehood, scheming and betrayal. I will not allow you to destroy Rhiannon this way. She is my child and you will hand her over now." James yelled at his aunt. In all his life the only results he had seen from the pure bloods and their agenda was a dark lord and his followers murdering people without remorse, while the other pure bloods in the Wizengamot acted like it didn't happen. He would not let his own daughter be drawn into this darkness, not if he could prevent it.

"James, please..." Albus started, but was soon interrupted by Dorea.

"Control yourself, boy, as much as I loath to admit it, you are still a Potter, so act like one." She said sternly, but without raising her voice. "You have no say in Rhiannon's life and her future. You gave me full custody of her, when you abandoned her ten years ago. You have no more rights concerning her."

"We have not abandoned her, we have done what we believed to be the best to guarantee her a safe life. We never intended her to live with you in your bigoted world." James replied angrily.

"And to send her live with magic hating muggles would have kept her safe and happy? Don't test me, James, I know enough about those people you would have forced Rhiannon to live with. And I know that her life would have been dreadful there."

"And living among your dishonest pure blood friends was better for her? Believe me, I will do everything in my powers to get my daughter back." James declared hotly as he glared at his aunt.

"Try it, James, and you will fail. I have full custody. The law is on my side and believe me you will find no support within the Wizengamot for your position. And should you think about taking her by force I can guarantee you a dark, cold cell in Azkaban for the next few decades. No one of sane mind will deny me the right to continue raising Rhiannon the way I have done so far." With these words, Dorea stood up and walked back towards the fireplace. "Rhiannon will grow up in a way befitting her station and you will have no say in that, James." Without further waiting, Dorea grabbed hand full of floo powder and left the headmaster's office.

James was seething in anger after his aunt was gone. He had hoped to finally see his daughter again, but despite all he had hoped for things had ended in the worst way. How could she deny him the right to raise his own child? How could she dare to think she knew better what was right for Rhiannon?

"I will get my daughter back and that woman won't stop me." James declared strongly.

"I believe it would be imprudent to act forcibly. Don't forget that Dorea's husband is the head of your family. And forcing Rhiannon away from the only real family she has known so far, will only cause her to despise you." Albus muttered contemplatively.

"So you want me to give up? To act like I never had a daughter and be happy about that woman keeping her away from me and Lily? You should know me well enough to know that I would never let that happen." James retorted aggressively.

"No, James. I don't want you to abandon her. But maybe you should first try to get to know Rhiannon; to show her that her family loves her, before you try to take her away. It would be better if she wanted to live with you. And I have just the idea how I can give you some chances to interact without Dorea interfering, my boy."

"And what idea would that be? She will be starting school again in less than a month and in the holidays Dorea will watch her like a hawk."

"If you were a teacher, things could be different." Albus said with a small smile. "Though our normal subjects all have enough teachers I still have one subject that I would like to introduce this year. For years I wanted to add a dueling class to our schools syllabus, but it wasn't easy to find a teacher who would be both willing and with a proper background for this task." With these words the old wizard took some papers from his desk and gave them to James.

James read the documents carefully, thinking over what this would mean for him. It would be a good chance to watch over his son and get to know his daughter, but it would also separate him from Lily for the greater part of the year. And teaching... he was an Auror before he went into hiding, would he be able to teach children anything at all? And then he read something that caused him to frown.

"Professor, this says that I would only get to teach fourth year and above, meaning both my children would not attend any of my classes. How is this supposed to help my situation?"

"The Board of Governors believes this subject to be a bit too dangerous for the younger years so they want only the students fourth year and above to be able to choose it as an extracurricular activity. I'm sorry James, but this is the best I can do to help you." Albus looked apologetic when he saw the crestfallen look on James face. He really wanted to help this man who had supported him faithfully for so many years. "See the positive side, James. You will have the entire school year to approach Rhiannon outside of her classes."

"Yes... it is a beginning. I'll take the job, hopefully Lily won't be too angry that she will be left alone for some months... maybe I can buy a house in Hogsmeade... there is much to do and so little time." James murmured mostly to himself, missing the pleased look on Albus face.

"Excellent. I'll prepare everything necessary for your new job. You go and finish your business, James, don't worry all will be well."

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**A/N: Well most people most likely still remember this chapter from the first time Thaedys uploaded it. Well let's just be glad he allowed me to reupload it.**

**There is only one thing I want to clear up here. Some people think that Dorea Potter is actually James Potter's mother in canon. But there are some things that make this a very questionable statement.**

**Dorea Potter was born as a Black, a family obsessed with blood purity. For her to marry a Potter would mean that Charlus was at least a respectable pure blood himself. That in itself contradicts some of the things James' parents have done.**

**Dorea herself is still on the Black family tapestry. Some family members have been blasted off for offenses such as marrying someone of lesser blood or reputation, or helping someone the Black family considered to be a traitor. For example Alphard Black was kicked out of the family and blasted off the family tree for giving Sirius money after he had left the family. The parents of James Potter not just allowed Sirius to live with them, but also treated him like a son. Yet Dorea is still on the family tree. The Potters allowed James to marry a muggleborn, yet Dorea still is on the tree. **

**So it is unlikely that she was the mother of James. An aunt is more likely, but not his mother. Also in canon Dorea died in 1977, only fifty-seven years old at that time. Since this is an AU where the war against Voldemort has not happened yet, she and her husband are still alive and playing their role in the pure blood dominated society of their time.**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Unwanted Reunion

September 1st came much too early for Rhiannon's liking. Though she appreciated Hogwarts and the wellspring of knowledge it presented to her, she dreaded meeting her family this year. Her great-aunt hand informed her of the meeting with Dumbledore and her father, James Potter, and Rhiannon was less than impressed with the lack of self-control her father had shown. She did not even want to imagine what scene those people would cause at King's Cross when they saw her before she could get on the train. The disgrace those people could cause would haunt her in many future social gatherings. Aunt Dorea saw a very similar risk and therefore brought Rhiannon to the Hogwarts Express as early as possible.

"Always remember your training, Rhiannon. No matter what your parents will attempt, don't do anything that would harm your reputation. And do as I told you and spend as much time as you can with Aries Black, I have given you enough reasons why that should be a priority for you." Dorea repeated her admonishment as she looked critically at the girl before her. Rhiannon was already dressed in her school robes, unwilling to change her clothes on the train when any random stranger could barge in. Her looks were impeccable, her scarlet hair hanging over her shoulder in one long braid, her green eyes shining like gems.

"Yes, Aunt Dorea. I will keep my distance from my family altogether. I have no intention to interact with the people that abandoned me this easily, in favor of their oh so great son." Rhiannon replied with badly disguised bitterness. She did not know why her parents left her behind, by now she didn't really care for their reasons since her life had turned out well. But the questions why still came up from time to time in her mind. Was she not worthy? Was it because she was a girl? Whatever reason they had, Rhiannon had come to adopt her guardians dislike of James Potter and his wife. Aunt Dorea and Uncle Charlus would rarely even acknowledge Lily as a Potter, mostly referring to her simply as James's wife.

"Good. Now go find a compartment before problems arrive. Don't forget to write us regularly and don't worry about contacting us if anything troubles you." Dorea said with a small smile as she watched her niece. "And don't forget what we talked about. Don't let Dumbledore's machinations keep you from socializing with your peers from other houses."

"Yes, Aunt Dorea. I shall take my leave now. Until December then. Farewell, aunt." With one last smile Rhiannon turned around and quickly entered the train, her trunk shrunk and charmed light in her pocket.

As Dorea left the platform she could see James Potter and his family arrive together with Sirius Black and his twin children. Lucky for Dorea she could leave unseen, making sure that they would not look for Rhiannon on the train this early. They would probably expect her to show up later, when the platform was packed with families to make a proper appearance, but they would wait in vain. And Dorea also had no intention to meet neither James nor Sirius, to her both were rather disgraceful for their families and any association with them would only tarnish her reputation.

Rhiannon soon found herself a compartment in the back of train, the place where usually mostly Slytherins congregated to be among themselves. She had no illusions that her aunt and Regulus Black had already made plans about her future, so she would have to play along and socialize with Aries and his friends. Hopefully they would be better company then Rhiannon's fellow Ravenclaw second years. Much to her disappointment her fellow housemates were more willing to spend their time with books then other human beings. And the only exceptions to that were less than appropriate company. Chang and Edgecombe were far to giggly for her tastes so she kept her distance from those girls. The only other Ravenclaw girl in her year was Sabrina Fawcett and that girl was so obtrusive that it was annoying for anyone to be near her longer then necessary.

Rhiannon's alone time in her compartment ended far too soon for her taste, but not because of any Slytherins, but because of a young girl with black hair and blue eyes. Rhiannon scrutinized the newcomer for some moments until the girl spoke up.

"Hi... may I join you? I would prefer not to sit alone in a compartment to be at the mercy of whoever sees fit barging in." She sounded somewhat timid. Rhiannon couldn't help but think if she looked and sounded the same way last year.

"So who says that no one will disturb this compartment?" Rhiannon asked with a raised eyebrow.

"The persons I want to avoid would never go this far back in the train unless they have to. They know this is Slytherin territory or at least that is what they call it, so I would be safer here." The girl replied.

"Well I am certainly no Slytherin even though I am here, but you are right, usually there will be mostly Slytherins in this part of the train." Rhiannon said with a small laugh. "But tell me who is it you are hiding from?"

"My boorish brother and his new best friend. Two Gryffindors for sure. I can't stand their attitude." The girl said with a small frown.

"Oh well, if you don't like Gryffindors you will be quite welcome in this part of the train. Please take a seat." Rhiannon gestured with one hand for the girl to sit down across from her. "Tell me, what is your name?"

At this the girl looked a bit uncomfortable, but she answered none the less. "My name is Catherine Black... yes I know … that Black."

"Sirius Black's daughter?" Catherine nodded to Rhiannon's question. "Interesting. I would have sworn both you and you twin brother would be ardent Gryffindors for sure, after growing up with that man. But just judging by your comments that might seem unlikely." Rhiannon said contemplative.

"Is this a problem? Do you want me to go?" Catherine asked a bit hesitantly.

"Not for me, but when Aries and his cronies show up, you will probably have to endure some scathing comments because of you father." Rhiannon commented.

"You know my cousin?"

"Only from the social gatherings. Our families wish for us to mingle more from this year on, they most likely plan to sign a contract soon." Rhiannon replied thoughtfully. "Oh, but where are my manners. I am Rhiannon Carys Potter, yes that Potter and no I have neither contact with my birth parents nor do I wish for it." She said with a disinterested look.

Catherine looked surprised at the girl before her. She had heard about Rhiannon Potter from her father, but she had certainly not expected her to be a girl like this, well versed and entrenched in the pure blood customs, allowing her life to be dictated by her guardians without a say in it.

"Well your birth parents are outside, waiting for your arrival to talk to you before you can disappear to Hogwarts for the year." Catherine said with a small, impish smile.

"So you want to go and tell on me?" Rhiannon asked in a bored tone.

"I have no reason to. I tried to get away from their group, so why should I draw them here."

"Good girl." Rhiannon said happily. "Keep this up and we will get along just fine."

To Rhiannon the conversation was over for now, so she looked out of the window, careful not to be seen from outside. The platform slowly filled with families, parents and siblings saying good-bye to the students before the children boarded the train that would bring them to Hogwarts. It was easy to tell which children were from proper families and which hailed from those families that had either a muggle background or would be called blood traitors in her aunt's social circles. The latter group openly showed their emotions without care for their reputation, exchanging heartfelt good byes with their children, while the proper families always kept their emotions in check while in public. To Rhiannon this was kind of symbolic, even here the distinction between the two groups was clear, the same dualism that was equally obvious in politics and culture.

Some time passed before the compartment door opened again. By now many students had passed the door and looked inside with avid interest, but so far none of them had seen any need to enter. That suited Rhiannon just fine, but she knew that her peace would find a quick end now. And when she looked up to see who had opened the door she was only mildly surprised to see Aries Black together with his cronies, Adrian Pucey and Terence Higgs.

"Now look at this, boys. See who has finally decided to show herself to us." Aries said with a haughty tone and a slight grin when he saw Rhiannon in the compartment. "So you finally decided to join us, Rhiannon. That is good, my father will be pleased to hear that."

"We both know that your parents and my guardians expect me to act like this, so please drop the act, you knew beforehand that it would come to this." Rhiannon replied with a small groan.

"Sure we do. Tell me, who is your new friend?" Aries asked as her strolled further into the compartment to sit down next to Rhiannon.

Rhiannon looked unsure whether to tell Aries or not, but she knew that lying would serve no purpose since he would find out the truth during the sorting anyways. "Aries, I am a bit surprised that you don't even recognize your own cousin." Rhiannon said with a raised eyebrow. "This is Catherine Black, yes she is the daughter of Sirius Black."

Aries eyes narrowed as he looked at his cousin, causing Catherine to almost squirm in discomfort. It was obvious that his thoughts about the girl were far less than positive and that he did not like having her in the same compartment. But Rhiannon did not like the sudden shift in his attitude, granted her own opinion of Sirius Black was equally bad, but she did not want to judge his children without further knowing them first.

"Cut her some slack, Aries." Rhiannon exclaimed annoyed. "Wait with your judgmental attitude until after her sorting. Who knows, she might surprise you."

Aries huffed a bit peeved, but said nothing else about Catherine. Instead he opted to ignore his cousin for the rest of the ride. He was far more interested in talking to Rhiannon.

"So, have you seen your fool of a brother prancing around on the platform?" Aries asked with a more mirthful expression.

"No, I was lucky that Aunt Dorea brought me early enough to avoid that particular meeting for now. I will have to deal with him later... it is inevitable. If I am lucky I won't be bothered for at least some days, but knowing Dumbledore and his friendship to my birth parents I wouldn't be too surprised when he calls me to his office to meet my... beloved family on the first day back." She said the last words with a sneer, showing openly what she thought about her parents.

"Why do you dislike your family this much? From what I have seen of them, they seem to be quite likeable." Catherine asked with a confused expression.

Aries groaned when he heard his cousin, but before he could make any snappish comment Rhiannon beat him to it with her answer, which was even more pert. "To you they might have seemed that way. But to me they are the worst kind of people. They sent me away, so they could take better care of my brother. No matter what excuse they have for that, it still means that they have willingly abandoned me. I don't take kindly to such betrayal, even though my life had turned out really well after I came to live with my aunt."

"Oh... I'm sorry... I did not know..." Catherine started, but was cut short by Aries.

"And that is the problem with you people. You are just like your father, you only see what you want without any care for the bigger picture." Aries said scathingly.

Rhiannon looked at Aries with a look that just said 'back off', before she told Catherine with a more even voice. "Don't fret it, you couldn't have known. They like to pose like the picture perfect family in public. Their real faces are unknown to the people... their actions are sugar-coated with the help of Albus Dumbledore. My life will be far better without them in it."

"Well I believe that settles this topic." Adrian Pucey said with a strained laugh in his attempt to steer the conversation towards more positive topics. "Ahem, Aries will you try out for the Quidditch team this year? Terence and I hope to fill some of the vacant positions."

Hearing this, Aries let out a more pleasant grin. Even Rhiannon and Catherine seemed happy that Adrian tried to change the topic of their conversation. "I don't know yet. I'm not that much of a Quidditch fanatic like you two and quite frankly Flint gives me the creeps when he is all serious during the training and games."

"Yeah I know, once Flint is on the field he is all business. Quidditch is his life as it seems." Adrian said in a good mood. "But I like Quidditch and scary captain or not, Flint won't keep me from at least trying to join the team."

"Yeah me, too." Terence piped up from next to Adrian.

"What about you Rhiannon? Interested in playing Quidditch?" Aries asked with a grin.

"I like to watch. Uncle Charlus sometimes takes me to the games of his beloved Puddlemere United, though aunt Dorea still thinks that a lady has no place in a stadium, neither as player nor as spectator." Rhiannon replied with a laugh. "I at least concur with my aunt on the opinion, that the Quidditch pitch is no place for me to be."

"Ah, the pity. I would have really liked to see if you are equally gifted on a broom like you are in your studies." Aries commented.

"Being good in school does not mean to be good at that sport. And I can do well without getting my head split open by rogue Bludgers. You guys go ahead and do that, I will watch and cheer from the sidelines. That is much safer."

"Cheer you say..." Aries said with sly grin. "Would you even cheer for Slytherin despite you being a Ravenclaw?"

"That depends." She replied tentatively with a small smile.

"Oh and on what does it depend?"

"Whether I have a good enough reason to cheer for a team other than the one of my house." Rhiannon replied coyly. This elicited chuckles from all three boys in the compartment and a questioning look from Catherine.

"You two sure are into your expected roles just because your families want you to get closer." Adrian commented offhandedly.

"We can either accept their wishes and try to get along or ignore their wishes and be miserable once word reaches our families that we ignored their orders. And quite frankly, I don't really mind spending more time with her." Aries explained casually. Rhiannon simply nodded in consent, showing that she felt equally about this.

The mood in the compartment was much better than in the beginning and the bantering between the students continued for some more time, though Catherine remained mostly silent, watching the interaction between the older students with avid interest. She heard some things about Rhiannon Potter, but it was clear that Rhiannon's parents had no idea who their daughter really was.

Later they were shortly interrupted by Aries' cousin, Draco Malfoy, dropping by with his two goons, complaining loudly about the oh so great Potter and his bad manners, much to Rhiannon's amusement. Judging by the blond boy's words her brother was just like she had imagined him to be, stuck up and arrogant because of his supposed destiny to defeat Voldemort. But on the other hand Draco was just as much of an arrogant peacock as his father and probably not very reliable when it comes to recounting incidents the way they had really happened.

* * *

When they had finally arrived at Hogwarts it was already dark outside, the way to the carriages lit with some torches. Rhiannon shared a carriage with Aries and his friends, watching the castle come slowly closer. The scenic way the carriages took towards the school was truly a sight to behold. It was almost as imposing as the boat ride during the first year; the castle itself ablaze with light, the building reflecting in the black lake like on a mirror while the carriages approached the main entrance in a fast pace. While Rhiannon enjoyed the view, Aries and Adrian talked merrily, making small bets whether one or more first years fell in the lake this year. During their own crossing, one of their year mates actually fell out of his boat, when he saw the giant squid for the first time. It was hilarious for all of them... well all except the now second year Hufflepuff.

All of Rhiannon's good mood vanished the moment she entered the Great Hall and saw the teachers sitting at the table on the other side of the room. "Oh just kill me now and spare me the hassle." She murmured annoyed.

"I believe that would be a terrible waste, Rhiannon. Better hurry to your table, else you will stand in the way. I'll talk to you in the morning." Aries said friendly when he stood next to her. He knew that the presence of James Potter at the teacher's table meant bad news for Rhiannon, but he couldn't help her with this, even if he wanted to. This was Potter family business.

James Potter watched the arriving students intently. He was disappointed when he had missed his daughter at King's Cross Station; in the mass of people she must have somehow slipped by them without them noticing it. But now he would finally see her after ten years and he was hard pressed not to jump from his seat and walk over to her when he saw her finally enter the Great Hall.

She was just like he had imagined her to be, so much like Lily, with her scarlet colored hair and green eyes. He was a bit miffed at first when Dumbledore told him that she wasn't a Gryffindor but a Ravenclaw, but that could be overlooked. What really shocked him was the displeased frown that spread on her face when she saw him. Moments before she had been smiling, chatting amicably with the group of students she had arrived with. And to make things worse, those students were Slytherins. No this couldn't be, his daughter wouldn't sympathize with the spawns of dark wizards. The idea itself was absurd. But why did that one Slytherin boy stop next to her when she stood there to stare at him? He definitely had a lot of things to talk about with his daughter.

James gaze followed Rhiannon as she finally sat down at the table with the rest of the Ravenclaw students, her face now an indifferent mask. Not even once did she turn her head to look at him again, something that unnerved James quite a bit.

"I can't believe she is friendly with Snakes..." James said with an exaggerated sigh, causing Snape to glare even more daggers at him.

"James, my boy, you really should not be this judgmental against one of the Houses, you will have to teach all of them equally and fairly." Albus Dumbledore said from his place next to James.

"But that does not mean that I have to accept my daughter frolicking around with Slytherins." James murmured annoyed.

No more words were spoke after that since Professor McGonagall had arrived with the new first years. The small eleven year old children looked nervous and awed by the school at the same time. Especially the charmed ceiling of the Great Hall seemed to draw their attention.

James couldn't help but grin when he saw his son standing among the first years as they stopped in front of the teacher's table. McGonagall quickly placed the stool and the Sorting Hat in front of the children, much to the confusion of the majority of the new kids. They seemed shocked when the hat suddenly started singing a rather ridiculous song.

James tried to remember the song from his own sorting, but no matter what he tried he couldn't remember it. But that wasn't important now, as the sorting had finally begun. In alphabetical order the new students were called forward.

James did not have to wait long for the first child whose sorting was interesting for him. Both of Sirius children would start this year and James had promised his friend to floo call him later to tell him which house they were in. Not that they had any doubts that both Catherine and Gabriel would make it into Gryffindor just like their parents. Sirius and his wife Marlene were sure that their children would follow their footsteps and James agreed fully.

"Black, Catherine." Minerva McGonagall exclaimed loudly. Slowly the raven haired girl walked forward and sat down on the chair. She could feel the eyes of most people in the room on her that very moment and it made her feel very uncomfortable. To all those who watched it seemed like the hat had a very intense discussion with the girl before it finally announced her house...

"Ravenclaw" The hat's voice boomed. The entire hall was silent for some moments before most people clapped politely. That the daughter of Sirius Black was sorted somewhere else but Gryffindor was unexpected, but Ravenclaw wasn't all that bad. The older sister of the Chosen One was a Ravenclaw after all.

The rest of the sorting happened without any further surprises, both Gabriel Black and Evan Potter, the famed Chosen One, were sorted into Gryffindor, much to James Potter's pride and joy. Aries other cousin, Draco ended up in Slytherin, not that anyone really doubted that a Malfoy would end up there anyways.

The entire feast went by without any interruptions, even the usual insane blabbering of Dumbledore did nothing to dampen the mood. But Rhiannon found herself clearly annoyed most of the time as she constantly felt watched by either Dumbledore, her father or her brother. To avoid loosing her patience and causing a scene Rhiannon tried to distract herself by talking to her housemates, though the only one near her that she did not dislike was Catherine, who had sat down as close as possible to the only girl she knew at Ravenclaw table.

"You do know that your father will most likely sulk for months just because you are not a Lion." Rhiannon said with a strained smile.

"Possibly, but mom will most likely set him straight should it start to annoy her. She does that from time to time, mostly when my dad tries to tell me and Gabriel about his adventures with his infamous group, the Marauders."

"Marauders... where have I heard that before..." Rhiannon mused for a moment before she remembered one of the lectures from her aunt before she started her first year. 'Don't you go and waste your time starting a ridiculous group like those worthless Marauders your father had created. You are at school to learn, not to bully others.' Yes that were the exact words Dorea Potter had used. Judging by her words, the tone of her voice and the sour look she had sported when she said that, the Marauders were most likely a group that the proper circles despised greatly. "You mean that group of bullies our fathers had founded."

Catherine nodded slightly. "Yeah. Mum didn't like them all that much, she said that she wouldn't have given dad any chance if he had not given up on those childish antics after he had graduated."

"Just by looking at our brothers I wouldn't be surprised if they plan to recreate that very group. Merlin help us all should they actually succeed." Rhiannon said with an exaggerated groan. When she looked over to the Gryffindor table she could already see Evan and Gabriel in an avid discussion with Hogwarts resident pranksters, the Weasley twins.

Rhiannon then looked back towards the head table, seeing her father still watching her before he stood up and started walking over to the Ravenclaw table. But Rhiannon really had no intention for that reunion, especially not in the middle of the Great Hall with all other students present, so she finished her meal and went to leave early.

"Sorry, Catherine, but I will retire now. Don't worry, Penelope will bring you and the other first years safely to the Ravenclaw tower." Before Catherine could reply anything, Rhiannon was already gone.

James could only watch his daughter leave the Hall hurriedly. He felt the disappointment that she did not even want to meet him, but it was quickly replaced by the anger he felt towards his aunt. This was all Dorea Potter's fault. She had turned his daughter against him and now Rhiannon did not even want to be in the same room with her own birth family. He needed help, surely Albus would help him find a way to approach his daughter without her running away. He just had to talk to her and clear the air, make her understand that Dorea had not told her the full truth about her family. Yes... then Rhiannon would surely be willing to be around him and her brother.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Bother

Rhiannon's first full day back at Hogwarts started to annoy her greatly. She knew that this day she would not be able to avoid her father, he would find her and talk to her if she wanted it or not. All she could do was to hope that it would not happen in a public setting. Her father did not really care for his reputation in the higher circles of their society so Rhiannon almost expected him to wait at the door of the Great Hall when she went there for breakfast.

Not waiting for her roommates she left the Ravenclaw tower and walked slowly towards the Great Hall... and her impending doom should her feeling be correct. But much to her surprise there was no one waiting for her at the entrance to the Hall. No her father was already seated at the teacher's table next to Albus Dumbledore, chatting amicably with the old wizard. James did not even register at first that his daughter had entered the room, but Dumbledore had and nodded towards Rhiannon in a silent greeting. Then her father looked at her and that foreboding feeling returned. But he still remained seated, much to her confusion.

She finally sat down at her table, starting her breakfast, but never leaving her father out of her sight for more than a few minutes at a time. This all was too suspicious. James Potter was planing something and if there was one thing that Dorea Potter respected Rhiannon's father for, then it was his ingenuity when it came to planning things. But she also said that he sadly wasted that talent on worthless pranks and other wastes of time.

The Great Hall slowly filled with students and the Hall became louder with every passing moment. It was also the time when Rhiannon got company at her house table as Catherine had finally found her way down there from the Ravenclaw tower.

"Good morning, Rhiannon." The young Black girl greeted the only person in her house that she knew for more than a fleeting moment, even if it really were only a few hours more.

"Oh, good morning, Catherine. Had any trouble finding back here this morning?" Rhiannon asked friendly.

"No, our prefect, Penelope Clearwater was her name I believe, lead us first years back here this morning."

"That is good. Our prefects last year were a bit self absorbed." As she said that Rhiannon looked a bit coldly towards a sixth year student who sat not far away from her. But he showed no reaction whether he had heard her or not. "And how are your new roommates?"

"They are all nice, especially Lisa and Su. I believe we will get along fine for the next seven years." Catherine replied smiling widely. "But we did not talk all that much yesterday, we were all tired from the day and went to bed shortly after arriving at our dorm."

They chatted a bit more during their breakfast, Rhiannon actually enjoying the easy conversation she had with Catherine. It was far better than with her own classmates; Cho and Marietta were mostly only talking with each other, giggling ever so often and her only other female classmate, Sabrina Fawcett was more interested in her magazines then other people at the moment.

"Why are you looking at the head table all the time?" Catherine asked when she saw Rhiannon look at her father for the sixth time in only a few minutes.

"James Potter is planning something. I know that he wants to talk to me very soon, but he did not use his chance when I entered the Great Hall earlier. Something is off..."

"Professor Potter... well he is your father, is he not? Surely he wants to catch up on what you did the last ten years..." Catherine said tentatively.

"Then he should have been there and not hiding with his precious son!" Rhiannon snapped back, causing Catherine to recoil slightly in surprise. "Sorry, I am not mad at you or anything... I just don't fancy meeting that man. Gladly he is only the dueling instructor, two more years before I have to suffer under his teachings."

Catherine remained silent after that. She knew better than to pry into other people's family business. And judging by Rhiannon's earlier outburst this topic was quite touchy for her and it would do no good to snoop.

Finally their head of house, Filius Flitwick, came to hand out their schedules, much to Rhiannon's satisfaction. She was already eager for her first lesson, if only to escape her father for some more time. The feeling she had because of him was really unnerving.

When Flitwick handed Rhiannon her schedule he stopped for a moment to tell her something. "The headmaster also wishes for you to meet him after breakfast, Ms Potter. You are excused from my class for that lesson." He said in a cheerful way. "The current password to the headmaster's office is lemon drop." With that he continued on to hand out the remaining schedules.

Rhiannon only groaned. "I should have expected that... at least it will be a private conversation." She said sullenly. Catherine just smiled supportive at her, but opted to say nothing. "Well, seeing that both the headmaster and Professor Potter have already left I guess I should be going, too. Maybe I can cut this nonsense short and partake in the second half of the Charms lesson."

She bid Catherine good-bye and slowly walked towards the exit of the hall. But before she could leave she was stopped by Aries and his friends, Adrian and Terence.

"Ah, Rhiannon. Would you allow me to escort you to our charms lesson? Much to my delight I have seen that we share quite a lot of our lessons this term." Aries said with a mock haughty voice, much to Rhiannon's amusement.

"Please, Aries, drop the act. Our minders are not here, so let us just act normal at school." Rhiannon said with a bright smile. This little act had actually improved her mood, something she was grateful for.

"Alright, but my question still stands." He replied with a smirk. Adrian and Terence also chuckled behind him in amusement.

"I am sorry, but I won't be there for the first lesson. The headmaster wishes to see me; no doubt because of the new professor." She made a face when she talked about her father. "But I hope that I will be able to take part in the Potions lesson later this day, we share that lesson as well so I will see you there."

"A shame. If the old man bothers you too much just let me know. I will ask my father if there is something that can be done about it. Dumbledore has no right to meddle in family business." Aries offered with a genuine expression on his face. "Till Potions then. Come on, boys, let us not keep this lady any longer." Aries said before he walked off towards the Charms classroom.

Rhiannon could only shake her head with a smile on her lips before she continued her way towards Dumbledore's office. Maybe her great-aunt's order, that she should have more contact with her social peers at school, wouldn't be so bad after all. At least Aries and his friends seemed far less stiff when they were away from their parents and their help might come in handy one day.

Unbeknownst to Rhiannon she had been observed by a group of first years at the Gryffindor table. The new Lions watched the sister of the Chosen One with much interest, especially said boy himself. Evan Potter had often asked his parents about his older sister, but most of their answers always started with 'probably', 'most likely' or 'maybe'. He had no certain knowledge of the witch that was born a bit more than a year earlier than him and that sparked his curiosity.

"Evan, why does your sister talk with those snakes? She isn't evil, is she?" Ron Weasley asked unsure.

"No... I doubt that she is evil. Headmaster Dumbledore would have done something to help her find the right way during her first year. They surely must have tried to bully her or something because she is my sister..." Evan said in his sister's defense.

"Yeah, I know at least one of that particular bunch of dark wizards in training. Their leader was my cousin, Aries. He is an arrogant git." Gabriel Black spat the words out in disgust when he thought about his relations. He had adopted his father's stance towards the rest of the Black family, seeing them as evil and abominable people.

"We better keep an eye on those gits, if they bother my sister again we will just have to do what our fathers would have done." Evan said with an evil smirk.

"Prank them until they beg for mercy." Both Gabriel and Evan said in unison.

This of course got the attention of Gryffindor's resident pranksters, the Weasley twins. Both offered almost immediately to help the sons of their idols, the Marauders. Together they would form great plans for their quest to prank the masses.

* * *

When Rhiannon had finally reached the door to the headmaster's office she hesitated. She was really not looking forward to this. She did not really know what it was that made her want to turn around and run, but she knew that she would rather be anywhere else and not here. For a moment she was even contemplating to just turn around and leave, but that thought was cut short when Dumbledore's voice beckoned her to enter.

She gulped slightly before she opened the door and entered the office with a mask of indifference on her face, unwilling to look as conflicted as she felt at the moment. Inside she saw Dumbledore sitting behind his desk on another throne like chair, just like the one he had in the Great Hall. On a chair in front of his desk sat James Potter; the man looked extremely giddy all of a sudden. Like a child that just got his favorite toy to play with. Seeing him like this actually irked Rhiannon quite a bit more than she would have expected.

She did not even get a chance to properly look around nor greet the headmaster before James shot out of his chair and hugged her tightly. This came very unexpected for the girl and caused her some discomfort. She was raised as a proper pure blood and pure bloods do not hug like this. At least not with people they do not consider as close friends or family.

"Oh Rhia, I can't tell you how happy I am to finally have you back after all these years." James said, still not letting go of his daughter.

Rhiannon finally struggled enough to get herself released from the man's embrace before she looked at him with a dark frown, one that would have made Walburga Black proud. "Just what do you mean 'have me back'? I am not a thing to be had. And I am definitely not yours. I am here because the headmaster has requested this, not because of you, so keep your distance and act like a man of your social standing." She snapped at him.

James could only look in shock at his daughter. Of all the things she could have said, this was the last he had expected. He took a step away from his daughter, disbelieve on his face. It was as if he stood in front of Dorea Potter again.

"You are my daughter. You are mine and Lily's child." He said as if it was the very basis of his believe.

Rhiannon instead ignored her father and turned towards Dumbledore with a frown. "Is there an academic reason why you have called me here, headmaster? If this is all about my screwed up family, then I would rather leave and go to my lessons. That is after all the reason why I attend this school."

"Rhiannon, my girl, I believe it would be better if you resolve your family issues today. It would only become a bother to you when you would rather concentrate on more important lessons then the introduction to the second year curriculum." Dumbledore said with his best grandfatherly voice and a benevolent smile. But he did not miss the evil look she gave him for addressing her this casually by her first name as if they were friends.

"As much a I appreciate your concern, but there are no issues in my opinion. My birth parents made their decision ten years ago and have to live with it. I am content and happy with living with Aunt Dorea and Uncle Charlus. They have given me all the chances I could possibly dream of in our world, by providing me with proper education and upbringing." Rhiannon said with a respectful tone, before she turned to her father and her voice slipped to a cold hiss. "But some people cannot accept that some decisions are irreversible."

"Proper upbringing?" James asked incredulously. "They have forced you to endure that awful pure blood society; to live in this world of deceit and betrayal." James looked livid just thinking about it. "We never wanted you to live with your great-aunt, because we feared they would do this to you... that society is not the world we wanted you to be raised in..."

Rhiannon narrowed her eyes in anger, but willed herself not to yell. Such behavior would be beneath her station in society. "The place you would have eventually sent me to, would have been intolerable for any magical child. My aunt and uncle have done their utmost to raise me befitting of my station as a Potter. They have spent years on establishing my position in the pure blood society and eventually they had succeeded. I am now seen as a proper member of the society our family belonged to for centuries, even despite my blood status." Rhiannon proclaimed proudly.

"Is that why you are so friendly with those dark children from Slytherin? Has Dorea already sold you to of them in a contract without telling me?" James said in angry frustration.

"Headmaster, if this is all I shall leave now and return to class. I thank you for the time you sacrificed for this; I know that you are a busy man. But it is obvious that it is not I who has issues, but that man who calls himself my father. Please tell Professor Potter to not bother me again unless it has something to do with my academic achievements. Otherwise I will have to file a complaint against one of your teachers and I am sure we all want to avoid that." She nodded her head towards the headmaster once more before she left without even glancing at her father.

James watched her leave, still shaking in his anger. He couldn't believe that his daughter had become one of those awful pure bloods. His parents had decided to leave that invidious society behind, so their son and grandchildren could live free and happy. But because of his aunt, his daughter had been drawn back into those social circles that he had learned to despise.

"James... I believe it would be for the best if you would keep your distance for some time. Today has made it clear that she does not feel comfortable around you at the moment. Your forceful approach will only drive her further away from you and your family." Dumbledore said sagely.

"You can't be serious... Stand by and watch while she is gallivanting around with those people who stand against all we are fighting for? Do nothing while dark wizards corrupt her? You know that I could never do that... I will have to see what I can do legally, there must be a way to get custody back from Dorea. Rhia mustn't be raised among those despicable people."

The old wizard could only sigh when he heard that. "James... you are not thinking clear right now. If you continue on this path then you will only earn her resentment in the end. And not all those students are necessarily evil. Just be mindful of her believes and interests and bide your time until she is willing to talk to you again." Dumbledore implored the younger man.

"Fine..." James grunted out. "But I will still review my options to get my daughter back to her real family and away from those conceited pure bloods." James said before he stormed out of the office, leaving a worried headmaster behind.

"I just hope he does not do anything that could send Rhiannon on the wrong path, she is such a gifted child... she alone might be enough to keep many out of the dark lords clutches. She may be our only way to approach the children of his followers." Dumbledore said to no one in particular. He had high expectations for the young Potter girl and knew that he would support he discretely whenever possible, especially to keep her on the right path.

* * *

Much to her chagrin Rhiannon missed her first Charms lesson of the year. When she finally managed to leave the headmaster's office there were only a few minutes left of Flitwik's lesson so she moved on to the Defense classroom and her first lesson with their new teacher, Quirinus Quirrel. To say she was less then impressed with the man would be an understatement. And she couldn't help herself but feel creeped out whenever the man stared at her, which happened during most of the lesson.

She was glad that at least the rest of the day promised to be worth her time. Double Potions would be challenging as usual. Snape would make sure that they would have no time to slack off. Though he was initially cold and even spiteful towards Rhiannon, he had gradually started to respect her as an attentive student during her first year at Hogwarts. She could only hope that the presence of her brother and father would not cause the man to shoot on everything with the name Potter. She really had no intention to have her reputation tarnished by those two.

And as if her father's behavior in the morning wasn't enough of a bother for, her brother's presence during lunch was sure enough to finally tick her off completely. She had just sat down at the Ravenclaw table when two figures slumped onto the seats across from her. But those two wore not the blue heraldry of Ravenclaw, but the red of Gryffindor.

"Are you lost? This is not the Gryffindor table, yours is over there." Rhiannon gestured towards the table where two red heads were just fooling around.

"Is that the way to greet your younger brother?" One of the two Gryffindor's asked.

"No, but it is the way to talk to an unwanted stranger. Be glad I am cordial, I don't know you and I have no desire to change that. Now, Mr Potter, return to your table and leave me be." Rhiannon said tensely.

"Told you she would not appreciate being disturbed during mealtime, Evan. Mealtime is meant for eating." The other Gryffindor said. But when another person sat down next to Rhiannon, this Gryffindor averted his attention to the newcomer. "Oh, hello Cathy. How does my favorite sister do today?"

Catherine sighed when she heard that. "What are you doing here Gabriel? You shouldn't be here."

"Ah sister, your words wound me. Evan and I just wished to spend our mealtime in the presence of the two prettiest Ravenclaws." Gabriel said smoothly, just like his father would have done it.

Cathy only rolled her eyes at these words, knowing that Gabriel was fully intent on emulating their father. And that included sweet-talking and stalking girls in nearly all seven years of his schooling. Rhiannon tried to completely ignore both boys in the hope that they would leave on their own, but she had no such luck.

"Why are you so cold towards me? I am your brother, shouldn't you be happy to see me again after so many years?" Evan asked, clearly annoyed by his sisters behavior.

"Why should I be happy that the people that have pretty much abandoned me ten years ago have returned now?" Rhiannon asked snappishly. "Ah, better don't answer that. Your father made it pretty clear this morning that he sees me as his property and that he can dictate my life as if I was his house elf. Sorry to disappoint, but the only Potters that I see as family are Aunt Dorea and Uncle Charlus." She glared at her brother for good measure before she continued. "Now that I have sufficiently answered your question get lost."

Evan looked genuinely taken aback when he heard what his father had supposedly done this morning. He knew that he had met with Rhiannon, but so far Evan had not had the time to talk to his father about it. But it still irked him that his own sister did not want to have any contact to him. His parent's always said that family is more important than anything. Did his sister not understand that their parent's only send her away for her own protection?

He was just about to retort when Gabriel stood up and pulled his friend's arm to force him to stand up as well. "Don't say something that you might regret later, Evan. You can see that she is not in the mood to talk because of something your dad has done, so drop it for now." Gabriel hissed at his friend in a low voice, hoping that Rhiannon and Catherine would not hear it.

Evan thought about struggling against his friend's grip, but in the end he could see Gabriel's point and stalked away in a huff to sit at the Gryffindor table for lunch. Gabriel remained with the Ravenclaws for some more moments, looking at Rhiannon with great interest until she glared at him.

"Don't mar that pretty face with such a look. I will leave willingly, for now. By Cathy, Rhia." He nodded towards his sister and winked at Rhiannon before he strolled away.

"Great, as if the special attention from one Black isn't enough already..." Rhiannon muttered. "Your brother is a bit precocious for an elven year old, Catherine."

"Blame our father for that." Catherine muttered. "But Gabriel and I won't be eleven for much longer. Our birthday is actually only two weeks from now, so he is technically not much younger than you and thereby equally mature..." She drifted off after seeing the dark look Rhiannon was giving her and stopped talking.

"Isn't it great. So many people ready to bother me and none of them care even a little about my wishes. I can accept that I have to spend time with Aries on Aunt Dorea's orders, but now your brother and mine as well... They will be a nuisance whenever I try to find some peaceful moments to study..."

Catherine smiled a bit sympathetically, but she couldn't help herself but find this entire situation somewhat amusing. Should Gabriel really act like their father described himself in his stories, then Rhiannon would probably curse him, or worse Aries would curse him the first chance he interrupts one of Gabriel's flirtations.

"I've got to go to potions. Don't get lost on the school grounds, Catherine." Rhiannon said rather irritated before she went to the door of the Great Hall where Aries and his friends were already waiting.

"Whatever you said to the Gryffindor wonder boy it has really irked him. Haven't seen anyone trying to stab his food this viciously." Adrian commented with a chuckle as he watched the Gryffindor table.

"He just learned the lesson, that you don't always get what you wish for." Rhiannon replied. "Let's go, I don't want to get Snape mad at me for being too late to his lesson."

"Too late for that, Draco told me that Snape is already pissed because of your brother and his friends disrupting his lesson. Apparently the first year Lions already managed the first cauldron meltdown of the year." Aries said with a chuckle. "Better keep your head down for now. He will surely want to maim anything with name Potter today."

"Great. Just what I needed. It took me months to get him to accept me as a normal student and not the daughter of his childhood nemesis and now my retarded brother destroys that in just one lesson." Rhiannon sighed exasperated.

"Don't worry, just sit with us and you will be okay. Can't let you suffer from the dungeon bat or else my father might get displeased." Aries joked as they slowly walked down the hallway towards the dungeons.

"Sure, it's better than sitting with Sabrina again, as nice as she is, the girl can barely tell a potion apart from her Pumpkin juice." Rhiannon replied with a laugh.

They continued to banter among their group, until they had finally reached the domain of Severus Snape, Potions master and the most disliked teacher at Hogwarts. But on their way down to the dungeons none of them had seen the specter that followed Rhiannon, watching her every action with great interest.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Hidden Desire

The days at Hogwarts quickly returned to the well-known rhythm for Rhiannon. Luckily for her the presence of Aries Black had discouraged Snape to make her suffer for her brothers inability to brew any potion correctly. Life was peaceful except for those infuriating hours when her brother and his group of miscreants bothered her. The Neo-Marauders, as they liked to call themselves, had even gotten some new members when Ronald Weasley, youngest brother of Hogwarts resident pranksters, and Neville Longbottom joined their group. Though Neville was pulled along whenever they did something, no matter if he wanted to or not. It was obvious that the poor boy seemed less thrilled with their pranks then the other three.

But at least James Potter had not tried to corner Rhiannon again to talk to her. He instead opted to watch her from afar, most likely due to Dumbledore's interference. Rhiannon had seen it several times that her father stopped his approach only after he got an admonishing look from the old headmaster. And Rhiannon could tell that James only begrudgingly followed the old man's wish. Every time James saw Rhiannon with Aries and some of the other Slytherins he looked like he wanted to jump up and drag her away kicking and screaming if necessary. This kind of bigotry against one of the four houses only caused Rhiannon to dislike her father even more.

And then came the Halloween feast, usually an occasion for the students to enjoy themselves, but this year it all nearly ended in a mass panic. All because of a fully grown troll running around inside the castle. Though the situation was resolved without casualties it still left a strange feeling with most of the students. Hogwarts was supposedly one of the safest places in the world, so the question how the troll could get inside the castle was often asked, but never answered.

The day after the troll incident other rumors spread quickly. The Hogwarts rumor mill, aka House Gryffindor, started to spin fantastic tales about how the troll has been defeated... and the apparent involvement of the Neo-Marauders. Rhiannon had no doubts that her brother would try something like this; playing the hero seemed to be his favorite pastime, though it mostly showed in his assumption, that he was heroically defending his sister against Slytherins, whenever he antagonized the snake house.

* * *

Rhiannon sat in her Charms lesson, trying to listen to Professor Flitwick, but to no avail as her next seat neighbor was in a chatty mood. The words of the small professor were easily missed while Rhiannon tried to ignore her neighbor.

"Was it really your brother who has defeated that troll?" Sabrina Fawcett asked Rhiannon with undisguised curiosity. For some time now the excitable girl tried to befriend Rhiannon since she was the only other girl in their second year dorm that would talk to her. The other two were content with being only among each other. And the fact that Rhiannon was often surrounded by either the chosen one or Slytherin's black prince was an added bonus for the twelve year old girl. Rhiannon's life seamed so much more exciting this year.

"I don't know, Sabrina. I told you so twice already. He sure seems stupid enough to actually go and search for a troll, when all others try to get away from it. His sense of self preservation seems to be faulty, not that his friends would be any better." Rhiannon said annoyed.

"Ah, that is such a brave thing to do, like those heroes from the books..." Sabrina swooned next to Rhiannon, causing the Potter girl to shake her head in frustration.

"More like misguided courage. There is a difference between bravery and a death wish." Rhiannon said with a frown.

"That is why they are called the house of the brave and not the house of the sane." Aries joked from his place on Rhiannon's other side. "Gryffindors always felt the need to show off just how little they value their own lives." His words actually elicited a small giggle from Rhiannon.

"At least the rumor mill has finally found a subject that does not involve me. I swear one more idiot asking me if I'm an evil witch and I snap. Stupid rumors just because I spend time with Slytherins. I knew before that such things would happen, but I had expected it to be this ridiculous." Rhiannon commented with annoyance.

"Just like my father said, those who spread rumors are despicable people, but to resort to violence will only give them more reason to believe they are right. Just ignore them, then these lies go away on their own." Aries said deliberately.

"Easy for you to say. Combined to that I also rarely get a chance to just sit somewhere and learn. Not even in the library. My idiot brother and his band of misfits always show up in the worst times and bug me."

"Actually I have a similar problem. My wonderful cousin has made it his mission to bother me at least twice a week to remind me to keep my distance from his goddess." Aries said with a laugh. "The idiot already tried to curse me a few times, though only with very little success."

"His goddess?" Rhiannon asked with a displeased frown.

"Relax, you know he somehow got it in his head that he has to protect you from all dark and evil things and worship you as the beautiful person you are. Really he is a bit early to hit on girls, I mean the guy has barely turned twelve. He is such an idiot, just like his father."

"Aw, but he always seems like such a nice person. Always complementing girls and helping them..." Sabrina interjected from her place after she had listened to the conversation between Aries and Rhiannon.

"He is good at sweet talking, but not much else. A worthless disgrace for the Black family, just like the rest of his part of the family." Aries commented sourly, showing his dislike for Sirius Black and his scions openly, just like he was used to do at home. "You are just the most interesting girl for him at this moment, Rhiannon. Give it some time and he find himself another girl to bother. He will just disgrace the Black name further, following his father's example. Even disowned that man and his spawns mean nothing but trouble for us..." He muttered darkly.

"Gabriel is an idiot yes, but Catherine is alright. A bit too trusting maybe, but she isn't a bigoted idiot like her brother." Rhiannon said. "You really should give her a chance. She might even find her way back into our society, once she is able to leave her father's shadow." This caused Aries to raise an eyebrow in obvious doubt.

"Maybe, but I will first have to talk to my father about this. Association with the disinherited part of the family is not just unusual, but also prohibited. But if she truly shows enough promise to find her way back to the family... who knows what the future holds in store for us." Aries said tentatively. His father would most likely chew his head off just for thinking about such a thing, but denying Rhiannon's words outright would only make her angry with him and he did not want that. He really enjoyed spending time with her so far.

"Do that..." Rhiannon wanted to reply, but Flitwick looked displeased in their direction.

"Ms Potter am I boring you? Maybe I should give you more practical work then, I know the theory is a bit dry." The diminutive professor squeaked in her direction. "Maybe you would like to show us how well you can cast the Featherweight Charm."

"Of course, Professor." Rhiannon replied, not really bothered that she had to show the charm. She had already learned most practical spells for this school year in her time at home. Growing up at a pure blood household sure had its perks like being able to bypass certain laws on underage sorcery.

With a swish of her wand Rhiannon performed the charm on the professor's desk and Flitwick tried to lift the desk. Much to his enjoyment the desk weighed nearly nothing. "Very nicely done, Ms Potter. Ten points to Ravenclaw for being able to do it on your first try." The professor said happily. "Be so kind to assist your fellow students should they need help." With these words Flitwick left Rhiannon to her own devices and continued showing the wand movements for the spell again and again for the less attentive students.

"You so have to show me how you do this." Sabrina whined loudly. "You always get those spells right on your first try, please teach me how you do it. I really don't want another long homework because I couldn't successfully cast the spell." In moments like this Rhiannon really just wanted to strangle the annoying girl. She really tried to warm up to her roommates, but such behavior really made it difficult.

* * *

A few days later Rhiannon was sitting in the Ravenclaw stands near the Quidditch pitch to watch the first match of the year. Even though it would be Slytherin against Gryffindor, she had agreed to come with her housemates to watch, especially since both Adrian and Terence, Aries best friends, had made it on the team. Much to her annoyance her brother and his friend Gabriel had somehow tried to get Dumbledore to permit them to play despite the restriction that first years were not allowed. She had little doubt that it was her father's influence that caused Dumbledore to even contemplate this. When it came to that sport James Potter was renown for his pigheadedness. When he wanted to see his son play in first year he would see his son play as a first year. The only question was how much had would cost the man to get this permission.

But luckily the Heads of the other three houses quickly intervened, much to James aggravation. The first year rule would not be changed and so Evan and Gabriel had to wait another year before they could try out for the Gryffindor team.

The game itself was less entertaining then the matches Rhiannon had seen with her great-uncle, but on the other hand those matches were from the professional league and this was only school sport. But still it could not rouse her interest in this game so Rhiannon left half way through the match, when Gryffindor was already safely in the lead and just waiting for their seeker to catch the Snitch.

It was also a way to safely escape before her brother would try to find her. She had seen him standing with the rest of the Gryffindor first years, but that was no guarantee that he would stay there. And since she had no idea where Aries had disappeared to, she had something that she had sorely missed since the beginning of this year. Time. Time she could spend alone, without anyone following her around or bothering her otherwise.

Rhiannon was pretty much alone as she reentered the castle. The Quidditch matches had always been really important to all houses so nearly all students and teachers were at the Pitch until the game was over. Not really knowing what to do, Rhiannon wandered around in the castle. During her first year she had not really cared about the school building. Most of her free time had been invested in studying in the library just like one would expect of a Ravenclaw. But this time she just wanted to use the time to explore, to maybe find a quiet place where she could escape her brother and his friends, when she wanted to learn, especially with the upcoming exams in mind...

As she wandered through the empty corridors she eventually happened upon a disused classroom. Usually she would not have been interested in this room, knowing full well what some of the upper years use these rooms for, but the door to the room stood ajar, revealing a large mirror inside. He curiosity getting the better of her, Rhiannon entered the room and looked at the mirror, reading the inscription on the mirror.

_'Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi_' The inscription made no sense to her at first, but when after some moments she saw the meaning of the scribbling. '_I show not your face but your hearts desire' _she said to herself, pondering what that meant. This was when she looked into the mirror itself for the first time.

She frowned at what she saw, to her it made no sense. What kind of desire should this be? Was the scribbling just a trick? A ploy to confuse whoever looks into the mirror? Or was there a deeper meaning to what she saw... it made no sense.

She could only continue to stare at the mirror, trying to find the meaning behind what it showed to her. She did not realize how time passed by and that the sun was already going down outside. The first time she looked in another direction was when someone spoke behind her.

"Ah, I see you have found the Mirror of Erised. A truly remarkable piece, but also a very dangerous artifact." The voice of Albus Dumbledore startled Rhiannon, shaking her out of the trance like state she was in when she looked at the mirror.

"Headmaster Dumbledore? Shouldn't you be at the Quidditch match?" She asked in confusion. To see the man here was unexpected and actually quite unwanted. She wasn't even sure if she was allowed to be in this room when they used it to store this magical artifact.

"My dear, the match has ended nearly five hours ago." Dumbledore said with a grandfatherly smile as a shocked look replaced Rhiannon's confusion.

"Five hours? It can't be that long... I mean I just got here and..."

"That, my dear, is the danger of the Mirror of Erised. Some wizards have wasted away while staring at it. The things it shows, the longing it creates... sometimes it is enough to make one forget all that happens around us." He paused for a moment, letting his words sink in. "Your brother has found this room only a few days ago and he, too, was entranced by what he saw." The old wizard said thoughtfully.

"So this is what this mirror does? I believed the inscription was a fluke. So it is supposed to show the deepest desire of the one who looks into it..." Rhiannon looked into the mirror once more, but she still only saw the same picture as before, just as confusing as it was before.

"Yes, only the deepest desire. I tell you this in confidence, my dear, your own brother saw his family, reunited and happy. A humble desire that you could easily fulfill. I am only allowed to tell you this because he does not want to keep it secret from his family." Dumbledore said with an almost compassionate tone.

Rhiannon only snorted rather un-ladylike to this. "I believe that this mirror is not working correctly then. I doubt that my brother would really see such a thing, he has a happy family life without me being part of it." She said with a bit more bitterness then she had intended, something that the old wizard noted with great interest. "Neither does he want me to be family, nor do I want to be family to him anymore. He just can't accept that there is someone who does not care about who he is. I am sure he would never see this as his hearts desire. If you try to meddle in Potter family affairs, then at least think about a believable ploy."

"Rhiannon..." For the first time Dumbledore addressed her by her name in this conversation, his eyes fixed on the young girl. "You judge your brother too harshly. And I can assure you that the mirror works just fine; in all the time I have known of its existence, with all those people who had looked into it, never has it shown something that was untrue. It always shows ones deepest desire, even those we didn't even know that we have."

"But... then why?" Rhiannon asked confused. "Why does it show me … this?" She was almost hesitant, not sure whether she should reveal what she saw or not. The hearts desire was a very personal information, but the headmaster might be of help. Her great-aunt did not trust the man for political reasons, but his knowledge and experience had to be respected.

"Might I ask what it is that troubles you so when you look into the mirror?" Dumbledore asked carefully, fully knowing that Rhiannon Potter was not one of his faithful followers, but a girl that, was raised to distrust him and his motives. But he could not deny that he was curious.

"Can I trust you that this will remain a secret? That this won't be made public? I don't even understand it myself, but I don't want others to know it..." Rhiannon asked with a sigh. Her aunt would blow a gasket when she heard about it, but Rhiannon's curiosity won in the end.

"Of course, my dear. If you so wish I will not reveal it to anyone. I can see it troubles you, what is it you see?" He knew he would have to tread carefully around the young Potter girl. He would have to earn her trust before she would even consider listening to his reasoning in other matters.

"I... see myself... wearing a sleeveless dress... my arms covered in runes. They are glowing, a shimmering mist wrapped around me like a shield that protects me... and my eyes are glowing eerily... but what has that to do with me, why is that my hearts desire?" Rhiannon asked with confusion palpable in her voice and on her face. She had not told him everything, she knew it would be better to keep certain parts to herself, parts like the features of her mirror image...

The old headmaster now sported a contemplative look. He was sure that he had heard of something like this before, sometimes long ago during his studies. But he could not remember where. It was confusing, a true conundrum. Why would Rhiannon see this as her hearts desire? He would have to research this. His plans with the stone were still many months away from becoming serious, so he would have the time to do this properly. But for now he could give the girl no real answer but his promise to look into it.

"Do you know what this means, professor?" Rhiannon asked after a few moments of silence.

"I am sorry, my dear. It does sound familiar, I remember this from somewhere, but I don't know where from. But I promise you that I will look into it and tell you as soon as I have an answer to your question. But for now I believe it is better that you go to dinner before it is too late." He said with a grandfatherly smile.

"Yes... of course." She said, trying not to sound too disappointed. She had really thought that the headmaster would be more useful to solve this riddle. "But... you shouldn't leave that mirror here, where every student can find it... it is dangerous I believe."

"Do not worry, it will be taken to a new place very soon and there no student will reach it ever again." He said evenly. Rhiannon only nodded before she walked away in the direction of the Great Hall, astounded how much time she spent on watching the mirror.

Dumbledore remained in the classroom with the mirror for some more time, thinking hard about what Rhiannon's desire could mean. That was until a voice interrupted his thoughts and a specter showed itself in the darkest corner of the room.

"The girl is meant for great things, headmaster. Your golden boy isn't the only one who will have to follow a greater destiny." The specter foreshadowed.

"Ah, good evening, I did not know that you also wander this part of the castle. You are rarely seen outside of your tower these days." Dumbledore replied friendly. "But what is your interest in young Rhiannon if I may ask?"

"The girl will learn things that you will never even begin to understand, given the right amount of time she will surpass you and all others. Her heart knows the truth even though her mind does not." The specter said before it vanished through the wall, leaving a frowning Dumbledore behind.

* * *

Only slightly later then usual Rhiannon arrived at the Great Hall and found her place at the Ravenclaw table next to Sabrina. The other Ravenclaw girl looked oddly at Rhiannon and especially the obvious confusion that was still visible on her face.

"Are you alright, Rhiannon? You look a bit … odd."

"Yeah, Sabrina. I am fine, really everything is alright." Rhiannon replied cautiously. As much as she appreciated that one of her dorm mates seemed to care for something else than books or stupid gossip, she couldn't share this with Sabrina.

She looked around the Hall, seeing Dumbledore now on his place at the head table, watching her with a curious expression. Her father next to him watched her as well while he spoke to the headmaster in hushed voices. Seeing this made Rhiannon already regret that she had talked to Dumbledore. No doubt the man had already told James Potter about her encounter with the Mirror of Erised. She scolded herself for her stupid trust in the man, her great-aunt was right, Dumbledore was not be trusted at any time.

Sabrina looked rather unconvinced but dropped the subject, seeing that Rhiannon would probably not elaborate on this subject any further. It was also then when Catherine joined them, sitting down on the other side of the table with a miffed expression.

"And what has bitten you?" Sabrina asked the younger girl with a raised eyebrow. Even Rhiannon looked at the usually chipper girl with a questioning expression.

"A mangy mutt if you have to know." Catherine replied with an annoyed tone. Both Rhiannon and Sabrina looked a bit confused by that statement and promptly demanded a clarification. "My father was here to... talk to me. Well he was here on Auror business but also used the time to see me and my brother... Apparently he was not so thrilled that I am not a dumb ass Gryffindor like my brother. He told me how disappointed he was about that..." She shook her head with a sad look on her face.

"What an ass. The more I hear about your father the more I can understand why the entire family dislikes him so much. A real shame to the Black name." Rhiannon seethed. This was just like her aunt had always described Sirius Black, the family traitor of the Black family. A Gryffindor to the core, full of the misguided Gryffindor pride.

"According to him Ravenclaws are those students, who are the most likely to follow the evil snakes into the ranks of the dark lord. He admonished me to be ever vigilant and make many friends in Gryffindor and Hufflepuff." Catherine raged one.

"Friends in Hufflepuff? Oh come on, once you show them some kindness, they follow you around like a bunch of lovesick puppies." Sabrina said with a laugh.

"Oh and Rhiannon, he also implored me to help keeping you away from my cousin and his evil Slytherin cronies. A Potter should not gallivant around with the evil spawn of Regulus Black." Catherine had to admit that she herself did not think all that much about her uncle, but her cousin had eventually started treating her almost normal; he was not the evil dark wizard, waiting for foolish first years to sacrifice to his dark lord, like her brother often proclaimed.

"And here I though my father is an idiot." Rhiannon said idly. "But at least my father can only complain about things without having any influence on my life. I am sorry that Sirius is such a lousy dad, Catherine." As she said that she looked towards her father at the head table with a withering look. James even cringed a bit when he saw how his daughter looked at him, though he had no idea why.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Refuge

The first term of this school year was nearly gone, only two more weeks left until winter break as the students began to groan under the strain the end of term tests. Just like in her first year Rhiannon used the time before the exams to seclude herself and learn. But that wasn't as easy as she had thought at first. She had spent her first year mostly in solitude, something that she was happy about, but this year people came to bother her day and night as it seemed.

Rhiannon had just entered another abandoned corridor of the castle as she tried to get rid of her dorm mate Sabrina Fawcett who was constantly begging her for help with her own studies. Rhiannon had tried to help the girl, but it was a hopeless case since Sabrina's attention span seemed extremely short for a Ravenclaw. The girl loved to read, but most explanations given to her by other people had little effect on her.

Finally having some quiet moments, Rhiannon started to reread her notes for Transfiguration, the subject of her next exam. McGonagall was stern during her lectures and had them write down every single word she said during her lessons. But even with these extensive notes it was still tedious to learn and understand everything that would be covered in the test.

She was well into her studies as another presence entered the room. Rhiannon looked up from her current book and was ready to make a scathing remark towards whoever had come to interrupt her this time when she saw that the person was neither student nor teacher, but one of the school ghosts. Ravenclaw's house ghost, the Grey Lady to be exact.

"This is an awful place for studies, young apprentice. Why would you choose this dreary old classroom, instead of on of the normal study rooms or the library?" The ghost asked Rhiannon with a questioning look.

Rhiannon did not understand why the ghost had suddenly appeared here of all places. The farthest the Grey Lady would usually travel away from the Ravenclaw tower was the Great Hall, so her being here was quite the curiosity. Somehow Rhiannon couldn't shake the feeling that now even the ghosts of Hogwarts had banded together to bother her during her study time, but she tried to disregard it, seeing it as nothing else but a stupid notion.

"This is the only place where I can study without being bothered by others. My brother and his group of misfits... even my own so-called friends never leave me be, when I just want to prepare for the exams." Rhiannon finally answered dejectedly.

"But child there are better places than an abandoned classroom in a dark corridor." The ghost shook its head with a sad expression. "Hogwarts offers many reclusive study rooms that just have to be found. And they are all preferable over this... place."

"But I don't have the time to search for them right now, I..." Rhiannon stopped mid sentence when she heard voices from the corridor outside of the room she was in.

"I tell you I have seen her walk towards this corridor, she must be somewhere here..." The voice was definitely Gabriel Black, she could easily identify it after the boy made it his mission to bug her every day with praising her beauty and other rather embarrassing exclamations, in front of as many people as possible.

"I told you we should have tried to get the map from Ron's brothers. It was our father's after all. Would be really useful right now. Let's just keep looking, she must be somewhere. Whatever reason she has to hide, we must help her." And idiot number two would be her very own brother, Evan. Still stubbornly fixed on protecting her from all bad influences despite her telling him to piss off more than once per day.

"Yeah, my git of a cousin must have done something to her. We must prank him later and I mean something really embarrassing." Gabriel... Rhiannon could only shake her head when she heard that. He had tried to prank Aries for months, but so far he had not been very successful. In fact most of his pranks ended up hitting Snape, causing both Gabriel and the other Marauders to spend most of their evenings in detentions.

Rhiannon quickly packed her stuff to leave the room before those two could find her. She was in no mood to deal with both her brother and Gabriel at the moment and she still had half of her transfiguration notes to read for the exam.

"Please excuse me, Lady, but I have to go now. I have to find another place to study as it seems." Rhiannon groaned annoyed when she heard her brother speak again, though he seemed to be farther away than before. Still this did not mean that she could just stay here. They would find her eventually if she stayed.

"Then come with me, child, I will show you a place where you can study in peace and solitude if you wish." The Grey Lady watched Rhiannon with a benevolent smile as the girl turned to the ghost with a disbelieving expression.

"You would do that? I can't tell you how happy this would make me... I mean, please show me this place. I would be most grateful to you."

"Come, apprentice. Follow me, but be silent, lest those two boys might find you when we leave." With these words the Grey Lady floated out of the room through the half closed door. Rhiannon quickly followed her after making sure that no one was in the corridor when she exited to room.

The ghost lead her through a number of corridors and down several staircases, not even speaking one word to the following girl. Rhiannon tried to figure out where exactly they were in the castle, but she had quickly lost her orientation. She could only hope that the ghost would also know a way to return to the Ravenclaw tower once she had shown her this study room.

After nearly fifteen minutes the ghost finally stopped in front of a portrait. When Rhiannon had a closer look at the portrait her eyes widened for a moment in realization. "This is your portrait." She said to the ghost before she read the inscription on the frame. "Helena Ravenclaw... you are Rowena Ravenclaw's daughter?" The ghost nodded wordlessly. "Of course, what better choice for our House, than our founders own daughter... but..."

"The story about me and my mother is for another time, child. We are here for another reason." The Grey Lady spoke with sadness in her voice. It was obvious that she was not willing to share this topic with just anybody. "This is the entrance to the place I have talked about. Place your hand on the frame and speak the password. It is paramount that you touch the frame." She waited until Rhiannon had her hand on the golden frame of the portrait before she told her the password. "Now say 'Corposant'." Without thinking about it Rhiannon repeated the word and suddenly felt the familiar pull of portkey traveling.

Rhiannon felt disoriented for some moments before she regained her wits. She had somehow ended up on the ground in front of the portrait, but to her shock the wall, no the entire room was different. Gone was the dark corridor that only had a few torches as light sources. She looked around, seeing a large room that looked very similar to the Ravenclaw common room. But most of the walls were full with bookcases. Dim light was shining through one of the windows of the room, not that it was needed with the countless candles in the room that filled it with a warm light.

Rhiannon slowly walked over to a window to see where exactly she was in the castle. She had no doubts that the portrait was some sort of portkey or other traveling device. But what she saw outside the window shocked her. There were trees, many trees. She was in a forest, somewhere away from the castle. She panicked a little when she thought about that, she was not allowed to leave the school grounds, she could be expelled for that if anyone found out.

It was moments later that the Grey Lady appeared in the room with a serene expression on her face. But Rhiannon could not share that same feeling at the moment, she was far to worried now.

"Where have you brought me? I am a student, I am not allowed to leave Hogwarts. Do you realize what trouble I am in now because of you?" She told the ghost accusingly, her eyes wide in fear of what might happen now.

"Rest assured, child, I have not led you away from Hogwarts. The Forbidden Forest is still a part of Hogwarts, so technically you have not broken any rules." The ghost told her with a small smile.

"The Forbidden Forest? But that is even worse... it is forbidden for students to be here... and what about the monsters..."

"Students are forbidden to enter the Forest. But you did not enter the forest, but a tower that is hidden at a creek inside the forest. Neither the tower nor the creek are the Forbidden Forest, which you are not allowed to enter. Believe me when I tell you that you will not be in any danger." The Grey Lady soothed the worried girl.

"Semantics..." The girl murmured. "But where exactly am I?"

"The other Founders called this place 'Rowena's Refuge'. Though they did so only in jest, the name still remained for this place. Every Founder had his or her own private place somewhere on the Hogwarts grounds. This one is hidden so deep within the forest, that only one of the others ever found it. Though Godric Gryffindor had to fight his way through the monsters in the forest in his attempts to find it."

Rhiannon looked around the room in amazement, now that her first panic had subsided. To stand in the rooms of Ravenclaw herself... it was an unbelievable honor. And all these books on the shelves, what secrets might lie here, hidden for centuries.

"You are in already in awe of the books she kept in the common room of the tower for light reading. All of these are nothing compared to the library she has in this building. It nearly made Alexandria envious." The ghost spoke with pride and mirth mixed in her voice.

"There are even more books?" Rhiannon asked dumbly, too shocked by the thought.

"Yes, apprentice. My mother had a copy of nearly every book that had existed in her time. But she only shared this wellspring of knowledge with very few people. In fact you are the first living person that has been allowed to come here since my mothers death."

"I don't know what to say... I am honored. But why? Why did you choose to bring me here? Has there been no one else before, I mean in one thousand years there must have been a lot of Ravenclaw students that would have been suitable..."

"Believe me, child, when I tell you that there is a very good reason for this. But that is a story for another day. For now I believe there are things you wanted to study. I shall leave for now, we will talk again soon." The ghost went to leave, but Rhiannon stopped her with another question.

"Wait, how do I get back?"

"The way you came. The portrait is here and in that corridor. The password is the same. And that corridor is directly underneath the Ravenclaw tower." The Grey Lady spoke with a smile. "Don't forget the time, young apprentice. Though there is a bedroom here, it would still be against the rules if you stayed here after curfew." And with these words the ghost was gone, leaving Rhiannon with many questions and the urge to further explore this house.

In the end her curiosity had triumphed and she had a look at the other rooms of the tower. Her breath hitched when she stepped into the library that filled half of the ground floor and the entire first floor of the building. There was so much knowledge collected here, hidden from everyone. Hidden for nearly one thousand years.

On the ground floor she also found Ravenclaw's study and the bedroom that the Grey Lady had talked about. It was amazing for Rhiannon. It took all her willpower to resist looking through the things in the study, instead she returned to the common room and sat down on one of the couches and resumed her studies. But her thoughts drifted away from the topic every few moments. She couldn't help but think about this place... why was it in such a good shape despite the fact that no one had been here for so long. And what kept the monsters of the forest away? Surely there were some kind of wards... there were so many questions she had for the Grey Lady... but these questions would have to wait.

* * *

It was nearly curfew that night, when Rhiannon returned to the common room. Only moments after she had entered the room she was already assailed by a nearly wailing Sabrina, who looked like the world was crashing down on her.

"Rhiaaaa, where were you? I need your help so much but you were nowhere to be found..." The girl complained loudly when she threw herself at Rhiannon.

"I was studying in a quiet place. Can't do anything with people interrupting me left and right." Rhiannon replied with an annoyed twitch.

She really did not want to share her new sanctuary with anyone else for the time being. There was so much she could learn without anyone else finding out. People like Dumbledore would loot the place and destroy all those books that they deemed to dangerous... she couldn't let that happen. For some reason Helena Ravenclaw had chosen her to reclaim Rowena's Refuge and Rhiannon would be damned before she would waste that exceptional gift.

"I need your help with Transfiguration, McGonagall will eat me alive should I fail that next exam."

"Alright, alright. But no more than one hour, after that I'm off to bed. So what is your problem with the subject?" Rhiannon asked with a sigh. She knew that Sabrina would bug her for days if she didn't help her now.

* * *

The exam time passed rather quickly, much to the delight of all students. Rhiannon actually enjoyed the challenge, but in the end she was glad that the winter holidays were right ahead of them. A few more days and they would return home for several weeks; for her that meant finally some time without being harassed by her brother and his friends.

Now with only a few days left before she would return home, Rhiannon sat in the library, working on some of her holiday assignments that she had gotten from teachers, that she would not see before the end of the holidays. That was until someone sat down beside her.

"Hey, Rhiannon." Aries greeted her jovially.

"Oh, hi Aries. What brings you here? This isn't your usual hangout. And it is quite rare to see you without your two cronies. Something happened to Adrian and Terence?"

"Nope, they have Quidditch practice." Rhiannon looked incredulously at Aries when she heard that. "Don't look like that, I know it is weird. Flint is such a maniac that he wants to do a training session that they will remember during the holidays, so they won't be slacking off until they return. Or something weird like that, I didn't really listen to Flint when he accosted Adrian and Terence in the common room."

"Why must all Quidditch captains be obsessed weirdos?"

"I have no idea. But at least I have some free time to spend with you today. " He smirked at her, causing Rhiannon to simply roll her eyes.

"I feel so special just because of that. But be truthful, why are you here Aries? You have countless other things you can do, things much more appealing to you than watching me read books in the library."

"Maybe I like watching you."

"That sounded just wrong in so many ways... you sound like Gabriel..." She shuddered exaggeratedly.

Aries looked almost shocked when she said that, being like that prat was the last thing he wanted to be. "Sorry, I really didn't mean it like that. But indeed there is a reason why I wanted to talk to you alone." At this Rhia raised an eyebrow in question. "I am here to personally invite you to the Yule Ball at Black Manor, as my guest for the evening."

"Guest for the evening..." She replied with a raised eyebrow. "...or do you mean as date for the ball?"

"Only if you wish to. I won't pressure you into anything." He smiled confidently at her.

He knew that for him there was no need to rush things. One word to his father and Rhiannon would be his through a contract, not the way he wanted it to be, but it gave him confidence to know that it was only a matter of whether he wanted to be with her or not. During the last months that he had spent with her he couldn't help but feeling intrigued by the young Potter girl. Even if they would not work out as a couple he would still want her to be a friend. He actually pitied Gabriel and his attempts to gain Rhiannon's attention. The boy had no idea that he would never stand a chance, not matter how chummy he is with her brother.

"Would it be just me or are my aunt and uncle invited as well?"

"They have already received a formal invitation. I merely wanted to invite you personally." He smiled charmingly at her, a smile that she returned after only a moment's hesitation.

"Fine, I will be there." She conceded much to Aries' satisfaction. Rhiannon knew that no matter what she decided here, her aunt and uncle would bring her along to the ball no matter what she wanted. Aunt Dorea would never miss such a social event like a ball hosted by the Black family.

"Splendid. My parents will be delighted to hear that. I guess I leave you to your books now. Adrian and Terence should be done with their training by now. See you later, Rhiannon." With a wink he left her alone and left the library with a very satisfied grin; he loves it when he gets his will, especially when it is this easy.

* * *

A few days later Rhiannon was on her way towards Ravenclaw tower as she heard someone call her name, repeatedly and loud enough that even the denizens of the Forbidden Forest could hear it clearly. Rhia tried to ignore the unwanted attention, but soon enough her brother and his misbegotten group of friends had caught up to her.

"Rhia, wait dammit." Evan yelled loudly. "Are you deaf or something?"

"No, but I am not interested in being around you and your immature group of bullies."

"Hey we are no bullies, we are pranksters. Marauders just like our fathers before us." Gabriel replied smugly.

"Just as I said, bullies. Doesn't make it any better that you follow the bad example of your fathers." Rhiannon replied exasperated.

"You wound me, Rhia. My beautiful goddess thinks so lowly of me. What we do are works of art." Gabriel made a mock hurt expression as he looked at the girl, Evan and Ron only snorted in amusement at his words.

"Tell that to Bullstrode and Moon; they are still in the hospital wing after your last prank has gone wrong. I really hope that the next time your prank explodes in your face and not in he face of innocent first years."

"Why are you defending the damn Snakes. They deserve all they get. Evils gits the lot of them." Ron Weasley exclaimed with a frown.

"You just go and pity yourself, Weasley. Just being around one of your family and your bigoted ignorance is enough to make me feel sickened to no end."

Rhiannon really disliked the whole Weasley family, ever since her first year. The red-head family was extremely unpopular in the social circles Rhiannon was used to. The fact that all Weasleys she has met so far never made a good impression on her, did not help that in the least. Charlie Weasley was in his last year when she started at Hogwarts and the only way she ever saw him was as the arrogant Quidditch captain who flaunted the misguided Gryffindor pride where ever he set foot. The twins were even worse in her opinion, useless bullies who got their fun from humiliating every non Gryffindor student. Their only prank against herself caused Rhiannon a day long stay in the hospital wing with a broken leg. Her aunt had blown a gasket because of that and demanded that the boys should be expelled, but Dumbledore would not listen. At least they got enough trouble that they never even thought about trying any of their pranks on her again. And this year they got a tyrannical Prefect Percy Weasley and the bigoted idiot Ron Weasley. In Rhiannon's opinion things couldn't get worse when that family is involved; they have finally hit an all time low.

Ron wanted to retort angrily, but Evan shut him up with a glare before he talked himself. "Let's just drop this topic, this is not why I want to talk to you, sis." He looked at her, waiting for a reaction, but she only looked at him almost impassively. "I just... do you want to come home for Christmas? With me and dad I mean. It would really mean a lot to our parents, especially mom."

"Sorry to burst your bubble, Evan, but I already have other plans for Yule." She especially stressed the word Yule in her answer to get her brother to understand that she did not celebrate that darn muggle holiday.

"What? But you can't. A family should celebrate together..." Evan was almost speechless, especially when he saw her completely indifferent expression. She did not care, not even one bit.

"I said that I already have other plans. I have a ball that I wish to attend and I will spend the rest of my holidays with my family." At this Evan actually looked at her with an almost hopeful expression, only to be disappointed moments later. "My real family, Aunt Dorea and Uncle Charles."

"How can you be like this?" Gabriel asked when he saw the crushed expression on his friends face. "This is my cousins doing, isn't it? Is he forcing you go to that ball with him? Just tell me and I will get my dad to help you out of that... we can..."

"Be silent, Gabriel. Yes it was your cousin who invited me. But I accepted willingly and I will go to that ball. And keep your mutt of a father away from me. After he treated Catherine so poorly just for being a Ravenclaw, he should better never show his face before me again." Rhiannon replied tersely.

"Rhia, come on. You are far too good for someone as evil as Aries!" Gabriel replied with a shocked expression.

"I don't have time for your antics. You don't know anything about Aries and my relationship." Rhiannon replied with a frustrated expression. "You asked your question and got your answer. Now leave me alone. Get back to your tower and stay there." Without waiting for a reply she stalked away angrily. But luckily none of the Marauders followed her.

Evan just stood there, completely silent as her last words to him replayed in his head. His older sister, his only sibling did not even see him and their parents as family. But why... how can this be? Why would she choose to spend her time at Christmas with people that are not her family? Just what has gone wrong..."

"Evan?" Ron asked carefully as he saw his friend just standing there without moving. "I think she somehow broke him."

"Don't worry Evan. This is just a mood she is in right now. All will be well eventually. I'm sure that she had not much choice but to agree with my cousin's demands. She will come home sooner or later..." Gabriel tried to cheer his friend up. He tried to find a logical answer for her behavior but so far the answer would not come. And what did she mean with 'the way his father had treated Catherine?' There were a lot of open questions that he would have to find his answers for.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Ambition

As the last days of the first term slowly trickled by, Rhiannon retreated more often from her fellow students, seeking solitude in her new refuge. Unbeknownst to her she was constantly under observation, the ghost of Helena Ravenclaw never far from her as she slowly roamed through the large library that Rowena Ravenclaw had left behind.

She looked more and more in awe as she read the titles of the many books, taking one every now and then to skim through it before she put it back. There were just so many books that she wanted to read, so much knowledge waiting to be learned and used. So much power that could be obtained without anyone ever finding out where it had come from.

"So much to learn, so much to read... but I don't have the time to do it." Rhiannon said with an exasperated sigh. "Just where should I begin..."

"Most of these books might proof to be a bit too difficult for you at the moment, young apprentice." Came the disembodied voice of the Grey Lady moments before the ghost floated through one of the bookshelves.

"But there has to be some place to begin?" Rhiannon asked with a disappointed tone.

"I had reacted similar when my mother told me that I had to wait before I could even grasp the knowledge that is hidden here. I reacted with disbelieve, acting miffed and stubbornly refusing my mother's attempts to teach me the things that I was ready to learn." The ghost spoke with sadness.

"Is there some place to start here? I mean there must be some books that are easier than others." Rhiannon asked again in the hope that the Grey Lady could help her.

"You are still too young and lack the necessary strength to pursue the spells that are described in these books. For the moment you should focus your own studies on the ancient lore and less challenging alchemy books."

As she heard this the girl let out a small groan. History was not a particular passion of hers and most of the basic alchemical studies included brewing potions which would require ingredients. Ingredients that she did not have at her disposal at the moment. Rhiannon sighed in disappointment before she turned to leave the library. So much knowledge at her disposal, but she trusted the word of the Ravenclaw house ghost that she was not yet ready for it.

"Wait, child. There might be something else that you can study until you are older. In my mother's study you can find her journals. Studying them could benefit your education and help you grasp the more complicated concepts of magic. My mother was very... descriptive when she wrote down her own thoughts and theories."

"But... isn't that kind of... I mean her journal is a very personal object of your mother. I wouldn't dare to take it for my own ambitions." Rhiannon replied with a very surprised expression. "I could never demand to be allowed to read through the journals of Rowena Ravenclaw."

"You need not demand it, because I offered them to you. All of her journals. My mother would have wanted that one of her more gifted students receives them." The ghost spoke benevolently as she floated away in the direction of Ravenclaw's personal study.

Rhiannon followed wordlessly, still stumped by the Grey Lady's offer. What would she learn from the journals? What secrets did Rowena Ravenclaw know without sharing them with the world? What would her housemates or even her head of house say if they knew that she had the journals?

No, she couldn't let them know. She mustn't let them know. Dumbledore would take them away from her as soon as he finds out that she has them; citing some old law that the books belong to the school as relics of the Four Founders. He would keep them in his office to himself and she would never see them again despite Ravenclaw's daughter giving the journals to her personally. And how should she explain where the journals had come from? It would be better to keep the existence of Rowena's Refuge and her library a secret. Rhiannon knew that it would be a mistake to give this never ending fount of knowledge away.

When they finally reached the study Rhiannon hesitated at first. During her first visit she had entered the study out of sheer curiosity, but had not dared to touch anything. And now she followed Ravenclaw's daughter into this room to retrieve some of Rowena's most personal relics.

The ghost beckoned her to enter once more and Rhiannon followed, albeit reluctantly. The room was small compared to the rest of the house, stuffed with books and tables full of magical items, scrolls and drawings. The room itself was a mess, nowhere as clean and ordered as the rest of the house, but at the same time it had a calming and homely feeling to it. The entire wall opposite of the door was one giant window, showing the endless green of the forest.

"The journals are here in the drawers of her desk, young apprentice. The place my mother put them only days before her death." The Grey Lady spoke with sadness as she broached the topic of her own mother's death.

Rhiannon slowly walked towards the large desk and opened the topmost drawer, revealing an old gray book inside, two more in brown covers were underneath it. Rhiannon held the gray book almost reverently and opened it with utmost care, fearful it might fall apart otherwise. But the book was in a remarkable good condition... like almost everything in this house, much to Rhiannon's confusion.

"How can all this be? I mean why is everything in such a good condition?" Rhiannon asked the ghost. "These things have been here for almost a thousand years and they look just like they had last been used recently..."

"My mother cared very much about her work and her library. Before her death she put up a charm that kept this place in the state it was by the time she died. Only the arrival of another living soul would break the charm."

"And I am the first you have brought here..." Rhiannon said in awe as she realized the implications of the ghosts words.

"Indeed. You are different from your peers and soon you will learn the reason why. But I must take my leave now. Study my mother's journals and you will soon understand which path will lead you to your true self." The Grey Lady said with benevolent voice before she disappeared, leaving Rhiannon alone in the study.

Rhiannon tried to comprehend what the ghost had meant with these last words, but in the end she gave up on that. Instead she opened the journal in her hand and started reading. Hopefully these journals would be enough to enable her to learn from all the other books.

* * *

Several days after Rhiannon's last encounter with the Grey Lady, the young witch sat in her room at home, reading in the journal, as she waited for her aunt to call for her. It was her second day home and the day of the Yule Ball at Black Manor. It would be one of the most important social events of the year, all families with power and the right reputation had been invited.

Dorea Potter was more than pleased when she heard that Rhiannon had accepted the personal invitation from Aries Black. Her niece had acted exactly as she was expected to and Dorea couldn't be happier about the outcome. That Rhiannon would attend the party as the date of the Black family's heir would send an unmistakable sign to all other pure blood families.

A knock on the door shook Rhiannon from her concentration on Ravenclaw's wisdom and only reluctantly did Rhiannon close the book before she admitted the person to her room. She had expected her aunt, but to her surprise it was her uncle who entered with a friendly look on his face.

"Rhiannon, dear, are you ready to leave? Your aunt is already somewhat impatient, this evening is very important to her." Charlus Potter said a wistful smile. Though he grew up with these kind of social parties, he couldn't help but wish to avoid this particular ball. Even for him there was a limit to the deceptions and political games he could stand at one time. This evening would bring nothing productive, that was clear to him. The guests would talk about politics all the time, but when it came to real decisions, they would always follow the one who had the most influence. And the men with the real influence on their political decisions at the moments would not even attend this ball.

"Yes, Uncle. I am ready." Rhiannon said as she stood up from her chair and walked over to the large mirror to check her looks one last time.

"You look beautiful as always, my dear child. A true gift to all of us. You will surely charm all of the guests." The man commented with a friendly smile.

"Thank you, uncle." Rhiannon replied before she looked at the mirror once more. The memory of the other mirror image flooded her mind, the image from the Mirror of Erised still as confusing for her as before. For a moment a feeling of trepidation took hold of her, just as she thought about that image.

To her uncle that must have looked different because he stepped beside her and place a hand on his niece's shoulder, looking at her worriedly. "Do not worry about this evening. I know that your aunt sees it as extremely important, but in the end it is the same as all those other parties. Nothing to be nervous about." He said with a reassuring voice.

Rhiannon looked at him confused for a moment before she realized why he had said this and mumbled an almost inaudible, "Yes, uncle...", before she turned away from the mirror and left the room with Charlus.

Dorea was already waiting for them to finally arrive near the fireplace so they could floo to the Black Manor. But the old woman looked at Rhiannon with a critical eye before they left, searching for any flaws in the girls looks and state of dress, but in the end she simply nodded with a satisfied smile on her face. She wouldn't allow her young niece to attend such an event if she did not look absolutely perfect, but much to Dorea's satisfaction the girl was quite the perfectionist herself when it came to these things.

* * *

One quick floo travel later they stood in the grand entrance hall of Black Manor. The place itself was a testament of the family's wealth and influence; black marble covering the entire floor of the large room, the walls adorned with portraits and other valuable ornaments. The place was a sight to behold and it was just the entrance of the manor.

The new head of the Black family had spared neither costs nor efforts when he had this manor built for his family. It was common knowledge that Regulus Black wanted to show just how powerful his family was even after all those years and the public scandal caused by Sirius betrayal. But according to the most persistent rumors, it was also Regulus' way to escape the clutches of his domineering mother who hhad resided in the gloomy ancestral home of the family.

The Potters were greeted by one of the Black house elves and lead towards the ball room. Rhiannon noted with some interest that the elf was not only dressed in a much better uniform than his fellow elves in other pure blood households, but the elf also seemed to have been trained properly to act with almost impeccable manners around important guests. Whether this was another way of the Black's to show off their superiority or if this was caused by the rumored fascination, the current Lord Black had with the small servants or not... There were just so many rumors surrounding Regulus Black and his family, Rhiannon barely knew what to believe at that moment.

When they finally arrived at the ball room the elf stepped in before the guests to announce their arrival. This gave Rhiannon some more moments just to look at this room. To her astonishment the room was easily bigger then the Great Hall at Hogwarts. On three sides of the room there were large windows and doors that lead into the garden of the Manor, because of the late hour the room was ablaze with light from the large chandeliers with crystal ornaments that sent the light into every corner of the room. Wealth and splendor at its peak; Rhiannon was sure that there could hardly be any family that showed of its wealth more then the Blacks. The Malfoys might be close, but Rhiannon had never seen their Manor, as they never deigned a measly half blood worthy of an invitation to their parties.

"His Lordship Charlus Potter, head of the Potter family, Lady Dorea Potter and Ms Rhiannon Potter." The elf announced with a booming voice that Rhiannon had not expected from a being this small.

Immediately the attention of the other guests shifted towards the door as Rhiannon followed her Uncle and Aunt as they marched into the room, their heads held high and their faces the usual stoic pure blood masks. They showcased a model pure blood family as they entered and few of the guests would have believed Rhiannon to be a anything less than another pure blood princess, had they not known the truth before.

Regulus Black and his wife soon came to greet their guests, Regulus actually sporting a small smile as he approached the Potters. "Lord Potter, Aunt Dorea. I am pleased that you could make it to our merry get-together."

Charlus merely nodded towards the younger lord, while it was Dorea who replied. "How could we not, Regulus. For nothing in this world would we have wanted to miss this grand celebration. It is good to see nearly all important families getting together outside of a Wizengamot meeting."

"Yes it is quite refreshing really. This evening we want to celebrate like its tradition. A great feast and dancing before us men will adjourn to the drawing-room to leave the ladies to their own devices." Regulus replied with a jovial tone. The way he acted surprised Rhiannon greatly, apparently the man was much more relaxed at his own parties, she remembered him to be rather stoical at the party at her aunts manor. Then she noticed that Regulus seemed to be waiting for someone; he looked over his shoulder with a small frown.

Moments later Aries joined the small group. It was obvious that his father had waited for him to show up since he looked disapprovingly at his son for a moment. "Forgive my lateness, but another guest demanded my full attention and it would have been rude to simply leave." Aries said with an apologetic tone. "Good evening, Lord Potter, Lady Potter. Ah and it is a pleasure that you have accepted my invitation, Rhiannon." He said with a smile as he looked at her.

"Good evening, Aries. How could I not accept after you personally invited me to come." Rhiannon replied with a bright smile. The adults with them watched the exchange with pleased expressions, especially Dorea seemed overjoyed by it.

"Would like to dance, Rhiannon? There will be few more songs before dinner will be served." Aries asked with the intention to get away from the adults so they could act more like their real selves and less like they are expected to by their families.

"It would be my pleasure.", was all Rhiannon replied, before she took Aries offered arm and let him lead her away from the adults.

"I must say their relationship has progressed nicely. They do seem to get along rather well." Commented Regulus as he watched his son and Rhiannon with a calculating gaze.

"Yes, I was very pleased when I heard about their budding friendship. Even despite the interference of the less desirable denizens at Hogwarts, they do seem to get along better with every passing day." Dorea replied evenly.

Her husband just watched silently. He was not against this relationship, quite the opposite. He was glad to see, that Rhiannon seemed to like the Black heir. It was the basis for him to even consider a contract for Rhiannon. In the last ten years the girl had become his second child and only daughter and he would be damned if he allowed her to be cursed with a loveless marriage, just for political gain. There are always ways to attain both Rhiannon's happiness and a advantageous political alliance, even if that meant to relinquish better contracts. But he could see that his fears might be unfounded in this case. But he would still keep a close eye on Rhiannon's relationships.

"So, have you decided which role you want to take this evening? Will you be my guest or my date for this evening, Rhiannon?" Aries asked the girl as he lead her to the dance floor.

"What difference would it make to you, Aries? I mean both our families have their own ideas about our relationship, so what we call it would make little difference."

"I would prefer to have you as my date. You look really stunning tonight, I really don't want to share you with the other guests." Aries replied with a suave voice. But Rhiannon looked at him with a smirk and a raised eyebrow when she heard his words. "Ah... and it would make things easier for me and keep much unwanted attention away from me as well." He conceded sheepishly, eliciting a small giggle from the girl.

"So the grand ladies bother you or are their daughters the reason for your discomfort?" Rhiannon asked mirthfully.

"Both actually. Lady Rosier won't stop talking about her daughter and young Cornelia just stands next to her blabbering mother and blushes. She may be a nice girl, but I am not interested in nine year old girls, thank you very much." He stated with finality, much to Rhiannon's amusement.

"A date it is then, but don't believe I will let you chase after other girls now. This means that you will have to devote your evening to me then." Rhiannon replied with a mock sultry tone. Aries chuckled when he heard her and couldn't help but smile. Maybe the entire evening would be better than he had initially hoped.

* * *

With the other Potter family the mood this evening was less happy. James wouldn't stop scowling the entire time, after he had heard from his son, that his daughter had not even contemplated for one moment, whether she would like to spend this Christmas with her real family.

Not even the presence of their family friends for their own small Christmas party could change his mood, even though Sirius and Remus tried everything to distract James. But it was no use and they soon gave up for that evening.

"You know, if you scowl any more you will get lots of wrinkles and look as old as Dumbledore when you return to Hogwarts. Just what would your students think about that. James Potter posing as Dumbledore Jr." Sirius Black said before he let out a barking laugh.

"How can I not be concerned, Sirius. My daughter is currently with those awful pure bloods at your brother's ball. I shudder to think what they might do to her, we all know how they react to anyone who isn't a pure blood like them. Just what is going on in Dorea's mind to drag my daughter there..." James replied with a worried tone.

"Those balls are bad, but I doubt that anyone would do something to her. It would be an affront to the host, to hurt one of the other guests and none of them would mess with my darling brother, now that he is the head of the family." Sirius interjected with a gruff voice. "It is more likely that she will be alone and isolated but nothing worse."

"Actually..." Catherine started before she hesitated due to the dark looks she got from both her father and James Potter. "Rhiannon is well liked and accepted among most of the pure bloods at school. They do treat her like an equal." Catherine's words were only met with snorts of disbelieve from both men.

"Don't be foolish, sister. They are only playing nice because Aries is not yet done playing with her. He is using her for his own amusement and once she gets boring to him, he will start to treat her like a lowly house elf. The other Slytherins only follow his lead and act like he does." Gabriel exclaimed with an annoyed tone. James stiffened and looked extremely angry when he heard the word play in this context with his daughter's name.

"You really are blind to most things, Gabriel." Catherine replied aggravated.

"Just whose side are you on, Cathy?" Gabriel replied annoyed. Even his father looked at Catherine expectantly for an answer to this.

"I am on my own side and unlike you I try to understand others."

"Tche, you really shouldn't get too involved with some of those people, Catherine." Sirius admonished his daughter. That was what he feared when his daughter was sorted into Ravenclaw. The bookworms are far too accepting of everything in their pursuit of knowledge. They let themselves be seduced by the promise of knowledge and that was something he couldn't allow to happen to his daughter. She mustn't fall into that trap of the dark.

"Why do I even try to talk to you stubborn people... it is truly a waste of time." Was all Catherine replied before she left the two adults alone with her brother. She had seen most of these oh so dark and dangerous pure blood children and most of them were actually normal students without any hidden agenda to kill all non pure bloods. But some people wouldn't listen to reason.

* * *

Rhiannon and Aries had danced for some time before he slowly lead her towards his friends and another rather big group of pure blood children. Rhiannon knew most of these children only in passing since most of the were Slytherins. Though she spent more time around Aries and his group her overall contact with the snake house was still rather limited.

"Ah look who comes back to us. We already believed that you are so entranced by the beauty of your dance partner, that you have totally forgotten about the rest of us." Adrian Pucey commented with a laugh as he saw Aries approach with Rhiannon on his arm.

"Hey, no hitting on my date. There are plenty of other girls for you to choose from." Aries replied with a small frown.

"Date? So you two are actually taking another step in your relationship like your families want you to?" Terrence Higgs asked with undisguised curiosity. But he only received a disinterested look from Rhiannon and a dark look from Aries. "No comment as always..." Terrence sighed.

"Actually there is something we need to tell you, Aries." Adrian said with look around as if he was making sure that no one was in hearing range. He made a motion for Aries to come closer. Aries only complied reluctantly as he had to let got of Rhiannon, but in the end he stood next to Adrian who leaned forward to whisper something in his friends ear. "There has been a slight … altercation, while you have danced with Rhiannon. Your cousin Draco made some... let's say scathing remarks about your date. It was plain rude and he seems to lack the discretion to keep his unwanted opinions to himself. I just thougth you should know before he does something that could ruin your evening with Rhiannon."

Aries looked around angrily when he heard that, searching for his cousin among the guests. "Where is that useless twerp?" He growled angrily, careful not to be too loud. He did not want Rhiannon to know about this. He had no idea how she would react to such behavior in a public setting and he did not want her to feel bad just because of one idiot with a big mouth.

"Over there." Adrian motioned with his head towards a group of youngsters near one of the doors to the garden. Among them he could easily see the platinum blond hair of his little cousin Draco Malfoy.

"I will deal with this." Aries said darkly, leaving no doubt that he was in no mood to allow Draco to go unpunished this evening. "Rhiannon, would you please excuse us for a moment, there is something we need to take care of. " He said with an apologetic look towards his date.

Rhiannon looked a bit perplexed with his sudden behavior and looked at him oddly and a bit miffed that the boys had some sort of secret that they did not wish to share with her. She only nodded towards Aries, but said not a single word as she made it clear that she was not amused by this sudden turn of events. This only intensified Aries wish to curse his little cousin even more.

Rhiannon watched Aries and Adrian stalk away towards another group of youngsters; Terence followed them after a moment of hesitation before he understood what his friends were up to.

Now completely alone among strangers Rhiannon decided to move a bit around, maybe she could find her aunt and join some conversation with the other pure blood ladies. It would surely be enlightening to hear the latest gossip. And Aries would surely have no problems to find her once he was done with his business, whatever it may be.

As Aries approached Draco his dark frown quickly discouraged anyone, who would have tried to talk to him at that moment. Even the other children around Draco saw the Black heir walking towards them and started to put more distance between Draco and themselves, as they had little doubt that Draco's loud mouth would cause him trouble now. All had seen it, all except Draco who was still oblivious to the approaching danger and made loud exclamations in his usual haughty tone.

"Cousin, come with me for a moment, we have some things to discuss." Aries said with a cold voice as he put a hand on Draco's shoulder, to lead him to a place where they would be able to talk unobserved.

Aries quickly lead Draco out of the door and into the garden, closely followed by Adrian and Terence. The other children only watched wordlessly, though some smirked when they though about what would await Draco now.

Draco, still rather oblivious to the situation he was in, turned around to look at his older cousin. He scowled at Aries before he complained loudly. "Why have you brought me out here? It's freaking cold..."

"The cold will be the least of your worries if you don't change, Draco." Aries said angrily. "I have been informed of your humble opinion concerning my date this evening."

"What? This is about that half blood upstart?" Draco exclaimed in annoyance. "You shouldn't even bother with lowly scum like her. A measly half blood upstart like her is so far beneath your station..." Draco couldn't finish the sentence before Aries grabbed the younger boys collar.

"Listen, Draco, and listen well. I won't repeat myself. If I ever hear you badmouth Rhiannon again, then I will make sure that the Malfoy line ends with you. Half blood or not, Rhiannon is a proper lady and a better person then you can ever hope to find as a future wife." At this Draco's eyes widened in shock. "Yes, Draco. If the negotiations between my father and Lord Potter progress in the way they have done so far, then that means, that you have just insulted the future Lady Black."

Aries exclamation surprised even his friends. Though they knew that Aries and Rhiannon's families wished for the two to become closer they were not aware what the current Lord Black had in mind for the young girl. But Aries had not mentioned that he actually had no knowledge whether there were negotiations, so far he only knew that Rhiannon was the most likely choice for his parents.

"You would actually dilute your bloodline with this half blood filth?" Draco exclaimed without thinking about the consequences. Before he could react he saw Aries first approaching his face.

"Aries... don't, he is not worth it." Adrian exclaimed stoically. Aries stopped mid swing, only a hairs breadth away from Draco's nose.

"You are right." Aries replied evenly as he pushed Draco away and straightened his own dress robes. "Draco, don't believe that your family is all powerful or anything like that, just because your father is currently voting as the proxy for Lord Slytherin. It is no sign of power, only a sign that your father has no spine and loves kissing the asses of old men." With these words Aries turned around and walked back towards the ball room.

But Draco was too angry to know when to shut up and yelled loudly. "How dare you, just wait until I tell my father about this!"

Before Draco could react Aries had already drawn his wand and sent Draco flying into the deep snow next to the path. With his wand still in hand Aries approached his cousin one last time, an unreadable expression on his face. "You have been warned, Draco. Next time I won't show you any mercy. And if you want to involve your father, you will soon see that the Black family holds considerably more power then you Malfoys. Not even the dark lord would prefer your allegiance if he had to choose."

This time Draco had wisely decided to remain silent, as he waited for Aries and his friends to disappear. To him this was an eye-opening experience to say the least. But at the same time it was clear that he would not tell his father about this particular incident, lest it might bring him more shame than anything else. But in his anger he was still planning to have his revenge for this humiliation. One way or another, he would have his revenge.

* * *

Rhiannon had already given up on her attempt to find her aunt in the masses of guests at this ball. There were so many people that Rhiannon was not even sure if she could get from one side of the room to the other without loosing her orientation in the mass of people. It was a nightmarish feeling to be among so many people, but not knowing most of them. This was definitely not her type of fun, that was for sure.

"Ah, Rhiannon. What are doing here all alone, my dear?" Rhiannon heard from behind her. As she turned around she looked at the face of Cecilia Black, the warm brown eyes of Aries' mother scrutinizing her curiously.

"Lady Black... I was looking for my aunt, but alas it is a rather fruitless endeavor to find her among all these guests." Rhiannon replied truthfully.

"You don't feel well when you are alone among so many strangers." It was an observation, not a question so Rhiannon remained silent and watched Cecilia. "Where has my son disappeared to? I thought he was looking forward to spend the evening with you. He wouldn't talk about anything else since he had returned home." At this Cecilia smiled charmingly at the younger girl.

"He... excused himself, since he had to take care of some business. At least that is what he said. I haven't seen him since."

Hearing this Cecilia looked displeased with her son, but she quickly put up her smile once more before she talked to the young girl. "Men... they sometimes act without consideration towards us ladies." The Black matriarch said with a soft shake of her head. "But why don't you come with me. We can talk somewhere more quiet and less crowded. I, too, feel oppressed by these kind of gatherings from time to time."

This surprised Rhiannon a bit, she had not expected that Aries' mother would want to talk to her alone this evening. As wife of the host she would usually be expected to be ever present at the ball and to entertain all guests. But despite her confusion Rhiannon agreed and followed Cecilia out of the ball room and down the long corridors of the manor.

In the end they entered a large winter garden filled with all kind of flowers and plants. Rhiannon looked once more in awe as she saw the many exotic plants that grew here.

"Ah, I see you like my little refuge here. This place is my little project and my most priced possession." Cecilia said with a smile as she finally sat down on a bench in the center of the garden. "I grew all the plants here myself, only with the help of a few house elves for the most tedious works that had to be done." She looked expectantly at Rhiannon before she patted the place next to her on the bench as a prompt to sit down for Rhiannon.

Hearing this surprised Rhiannon greatly, she had not expected that the Lady Black would follow such a … arduous pastime. "This is a beautiful garden, Lady Black." Rhiannon finally responded and sat down next to Cecilia.

"All of us need something that they love to do. A hobby that keeps us grounded and sane even in times like these. Here I can be myself and follow my love for plants, that I had since my first Herbology lesson at school. In fact it was during such a lesson that I had talked to my husband for the very first time." Cecilia reminisced with a dreamy smile.

"I understand what you mean, but this hobby is rather uncommon among the ladies of the pure blood society..." Rhiannon said before she trailed of, unsure whether it would be wise to finish this sentence in front of Cecilia.

"Please, speak your mind, my dear. I won't judge you badly for it. In fact I would be offended if you kept the truth from me or worse lied to my face trying to please me. I have enough sycophants, Rhiannon, and I don't want you to be one of them. I believe that would be a terrible waste, especially since I have been told that you are well educated and intelligent."

These words caused Rhiannon to blush slightly at the praise. But she was also a bit flabbergasted by the bluntness of the woman next to her. Rhiannon saw now that her first assessment of Cecilia Black was indeed correct and that there was much more behind the smiling mask the woman wore at all social gatherings.

"It is just that... most pure blood ladies would scoff at such a hobby since it entails mostly manual labor. Herbology rarely needs magic of any kind, but only proper care and undivided attention to some of the more problematic plants... I must admit that I never had the required patience and talent for this particular subject..."

"Yes, Rhiannon. But that is exactly why this hobby means so much to me. It is a complete difference from the usual daily routines of the other pure blood ladies. Its different and fulfilling to see a plant grow from the seed into a beautiful flower. If you wish I can teach you a few things that will help you, if you would like." Cecilia offered with a smile.

"I would be grateful for that..." Rhiannon replied, feeling oddly surprised by this offer.

"There is one thing I want you to understand, Rhiannon. Most ladies of our standing have a dreadful life, living for nothing else but senseless parties and playing the role of the good wife for their husband." Cecilia said with a critical voice, once more surprising Rhiannon with her openness. "Tell me, Rhiannon, what are your aspirations for your life after Hogwarts?"

"I... I don't know... I mean I am only in my second year, the question about the future after that has not yet crossed my mind..." Rhiannon answered hesitantly. "I know what is expected of me. To find a husband from a good family, to settle down and have a family of my own. But... I don't want to end up as some kind of trophy wife. I want to do something that benefits my family more than just hosting a party now and then." While she said that she kept her gaze on one of the colorful flowers nearby, unwilling to look directly at Cecilia. Even if it was just implied, she might have inadvertently insulted the host of this ball.

But Cecilia only laughed slightly when she heard Rhiannon's words. "It is good that you think that way. Everyone should have ambitions. Whether it is the ambition to simply grow a garden like this..." at this she made a gesture towards her plants, "... or the ambition to be more then what is expected of us. Your aunt may tell you different, but the old tradition of the wife that stays at home to raise the kids is slowly becoming obsolete. Family is important, that will never change, but that does not limit our future to just this one duty. But I believe I have lectured you enough for one evening. Maybe you should return to the ball, Aries might get worried if he can't find you once he has concluded whatever business he had."

Rhiannon knew that the conversation was over and that the Lady Black wished to be left alone now, so she stood up and curtsied before the lady. "Thank you for telling me this, Lady Black. I will remember your words and find an ambition worthy to pursue." With one last smile Rhiannon left the winter garden and followed the hallway back in the direction of the ball room.

Had she stayed a moment longer she would have seen the other person, who had listened to their conversation, taking her place on the bench. Cecilia simply smiled wistful at that person before she said with determination, "Regulus, I have decided that I want this girl as my daughter. She has a spirit that will greatly benefit our family in the future. She will do the Blacks proud."

Regulus simply chuckled at his wife's words. "And here I thought that you did not wish to pressure the children into a marriage with a contract. Didn't you say that you wanted them to find love instead of feeling obligated to get along?"

"I still believe in my words. I simply think that we should encourage Aries to do his utmost to gain her affection." Cecilia replied with a smirk.

"And what if she does not fall for him, my dear? You can't force feelings except by using certain potions and I doubt that you would plan anything illegal."

"Oh she will fall in love with him, I will see to that. This girl has ambitions for her future, much unlike the other girls we had considered for our son. I won't accept any other girl to become my daughter." Cecilia said with determination.

"If that is what you wish... who am I to deny my wife." Regulus told his wife as he stood up and took the hand of his wife to place a kiss on her knuckles. "The sons of the Black family always get the best suited and most beautiful women." His words caused Cecilia to blush before she stood up and let him lead her back to the ball room.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Understanding

_In all the years of my studies, all my striving to find new forms of magic, I have spent much of my time traveling the continent. In the time my fellow wizards and witches adhered to the narcissistic conviction of human superiority I studied the magic of other species and it had been eye-opening and humbling in many ways. The mind magic used by certain Veela tribes, the intricate illusions used by nymphs and the frightening mastery of shadows and blood that the vampire's possess, have made it obvious that our claims on superiority are more than questionable. All the knowledge I could gather from these races... and yet I was unable to use most of the newly found wisdom. If only I could unravel the mysteries of the ancient races and their way of using magic... _

_~ Striving for Wisdom, From the Journals of Rowena Ravenclaw~_

The winter holidays passed almost too quickly for Rhiannon and she soon found herself in the familiar scenery of King's Cross Station to, board the Hogwarts Express. It was her great-uncle Charlus who dropped her off at the station on this day, only because her aunt had prior engagements that could not be rescheduled. Like the last time she had come to the train, her uncle brought her much earlier than any other student would arrive. But much too Rhiannon's annoyance her birth family had also chosen to appear much earlier this time, making it hard for her to get near the train without being confronted by them.

"And there goes the peaceful morning..." Rhiannon sighed dejectedly as she spotted the Potters.

"Do not worry, my dear. They can't do anything. We will try to cut this short so you can get on the train before the other families arrive and cause a scene." Charlus assured his niece as he placed a supportive hand on her shoulder.

Rhiannon looked at the group that awaited her with narrowed eyes, waiting for them to start causing a scene. She expected the worst from them now, especially from her father after his earlier shows of immaturity. There they stood, her parents, together with her brother, as well as Sirius and his children. Catherine looked almost apologetic at Rhiannon, since she knew that this situation would most likely not end well this time. Oddly enough though Evan only looked at her once with an unreadable expression before he engaged Gabriel in a conversation, turning his back towards his sister. It was unexpected, but Rhiannon would appreciate it if he decided to leave her in peace for some time after her harsh words before the holidays.

And just as expected James Potter almost immediately approached her, but was quickly held back by his wife. Lily Potter gave James only a dark look and spoke some words which Rhiannon could not hear. But whatever she had said, it caused James to back down and stay where he was. So in the end only Lily and ,much to Rhiannon's aggravation, Sirius Black approached her and Charlus with determined looks.

Rhiannon was unsure what to make of this situation, she was glad that her hotheaded father seemed to stay away, but what was worse for the girl, she now had to face her mother and she had absolutely no idea how to react to her. As a girl of her social standing she knew that she should not even deign a muggleborn worthy of any attention, but deep down she was also curious. Unlike her father, Rhiannon's mother has not yet done anything to aggravate her further then the initial abandonment, that caused this rift between them. What should she expect of this woman that looked so much like an older version of herself? Were there more similarities besides the looks? Should she even care about that or simply ignore her and board the train without a word?

Lily stopped only a few feet away from Rhiannon and Charlus, both still remaining silent. For some long silent moments Lily just looked at her daughter with a strange expression before her features softened and she gave her daughter a small smile.

"Hello, Rhiannon... I know it has been a long time since we had met the last time, but I am sure that you know who I am." Lily said with an almost sad voice.

"I do know who you are." Was all that Rhiannon replied with an emotionless voice. She was careful to keep up her indifferent mask, always willing herself to show as few emotions in such situations as possible.

Lily smiled at her daughter when she heard the reply, even though it was emotionless she could still see that her daughter had great difficulty to maintain this emotionless charade. It gave her hope that her daughter might still harbor different feelings for her family then indifference or dislike.

Sirius, though, made no attempt to see what was underneath the cold mask and grew angry when he saw and heard Rhiannon's reaction. "Are you proud of yourself, Charlus?" He snapped at the old man. "Proud that you have turned her into another of those emotionless pure blood dolls, that only live to do what they are told?"

"It is obvious that your hatred of the society you have grown up in has finally blinded you to everything else, Sirius. Rhiannon has emotions, but unlike you, she knows when to show them and when to remain calm. A lesson you and my... nephew should have learned long ago." Charlus replied in a calm manner.

"What do you..." Sirius started, but has was quickly interrupted by Lily.

"Sirius, don't make a fool out of yourself. This is neither the place nor the time for such debates." Lily told her friend almost sternly.

"No, Lily. This is the right place. They only listen when their reputation could suffer. We have no idea what they have planned with Rhiannon. But knowing my evil brother..."

"Knowing me, Sirius? I doubt that you ever made any attempt to do that after our mother punished you for being sorted into Gryffindor." Came the smooth drawl of Regulus Black from behind the group.

Sirius whirled around angrily to face his brother and just as expected her looked directly into the uncaring eyes of Regulus Black, who had just arrived with his wife and son.

"People like you are the reason our society slowly dies, Regulus. People like you who almost desperately cling to outdated traditions that hinder the progress of our world. Just tell me, dear brother, have you already bought your son a wife? Maybe it is even Rhiannon who you try to force to marry your son through a contract." Sirius said agitated.

Lily watched the scene worriedly, she wanted to talk to her daughter, to explain herself in a calm and truthful way. But it was clear now, that her chance was gone. But as she looked at her daughter she saw that Rhiannon was still watching her with an unreadable expression. When their eyes looked Lily was sure that she had seen some emotion in the green orbs of her daughter. It was obvious that Rhiannon was studying her silently as Sirius and Regulus talked. It was a small consolation for Lily to see that Rhiannon had some sort of interest in her. Hearing James and Sirius talk, she had feared her daughter might ignore or worse even hate her simply for being a muggleborn.

Regulus at the same time watched his brother rather unimpressed, before he turned to his son, ignoring Sirius in the process. "Aries, it is time for you to board the train. Take care my son."

"You, too, Rhiannon. Don't forget to write us regularly and to focus on your studies." Charlus told his niece with a friendly smile.

"Yes, Uncle Charlus. Farewell." She walked past Sirius and her mother and stopped shortly next to Aries. She turned to Regulus and Cecilia for a moment and curtsied before the lord and lady. "Good bye, Lord Black, Lady Black." Regulus nodded approvingly at the girl and Cecilia gave the girl a gentle smile before Rhiannon followed Aries to the train.

"Rhiannon." Came the exclamation from Lily as she saw her daughter leave. Rhiannon actually stopped and looked over her shoulder to see her birth mother. "I want you to know that no matter what you become in your future and even if you are ashamed of what I am, I will always love you, my daughter." Lily said with a sad voice.

Rhiannon was actually stumped by this exclamation, her indifferent mask cracking for a short, almost imperceptible moment before she could regain her composure and answer. "I know... but you no longer have a place in my life." She did not turn around again and boarded the train almost hurriedly to get away from this situation.

Lily cried silently when she heard her daughter's reply. She knew that Rhiannon was not ready yet to forgive and she would not pressure her daughter. But even though the words hurt, Lily still had some hope left. There were emotions left in her daughter. Emotions for her family that were not hate or despise. She could see it on Rhiannon's face in that one short moment that the girl's mask had disappeared. All she could do now was wait. But she would also have to keep James from ruining things any further with his behavior. She already started to contemplate how to do that on her way back to her husband, who looked livid from the first moment he had seen Regulus Black join the conversation.

Sirius still glared at his brother, seeing him as one of the sources of all evil that had happened to him and his friends. "I swear to you, Regulus, if you try to ruin the girls life with one of your despicable pure blood schemes then..."

"Then what, Sirius? You still act like a child, grow up already. Even after so many years you still shame your family. We will finish any discussion that might still be open when you have finally matured enough." And with these words Regulus and his wife walked over to Charlus and left together with the old Potter.

What the men had not seen was the calculating look on Cecilia's face. She had watched the entire scene unfold and she would be lying if she denied that she was pleased with what she saw. The way Rhiannon reacted to that muggleborn mother of hers was eyeopening. It was good to see that Rhiannon had no wish to be near that muggleborn, otherwise it would have only complicated her plans. But the girl's reaction gave Cecilia a good idea on how to get the girl closer to her family. Oh yes, her plan would be flawless and once she had succeeded no one, neither light nor dark, would be able to claim that the girl had been forced into a relationship with Aries. That alone would prove some many rumors about her family wrong...

* * *

Rhiannon sat quietly in a compartment, her eyes closed as she leaned against the wall. The day had only begun and she wished it was finally over. But she knew that she would not have any luck with that. Aries sat across from her, watching her silently as he tried to understand what Rhiannon was going through at that moment. He did not like seeing Rhiannon with his dreaded uncle Sirius. Those are the kind of people that he did not want her to get into contact with at all. Yes, it was for the best that way. No matter what idiots like Draco thought, Rhiannon was far above those muggle lovers and blood traitors.

But it still affected her badly as it seemed and that caused Aries to scowl. He knew that Rhiannon was good at hiding her true feelings if she wanted it. The difference in her behavior when he just compared her character in private and in public was enough proof for that.

He then saw Catherine outside of their compartment, looking hesitant to enter. Almost begrudgingly he motioned for her to enter, knowing that Rhiannon would most likely appreciate having the girl near her. From what he had seen so far his younger cousin was about the only girl he would call a real friend to Rhiannon, the other girls that suddenly started to take interest in getting acquainted with the younger Potter seemed to aggravate Rhiannon most of the time. Even though Catherine was the daughter of a blood traitor, he was still willing to accept her for Rhiannon's sake. Catherine acted decent enough for a pure blood child; in fact much better than expected for a girl with her upbringing. But that doesn't mean that he would suddenly start seeing her as his long lost younger sister or something like that. He was merely willing to tolerate her and observe future development.

The compartment remained quiet for some more time until Adrian and Terence arrived only minutes before the train left the station. It stayed that way until they had already passed half of the way back to school before trouble arrived in the form of Evan Potter and Gabriel Black. When both boys suddenly appeared at the door of the compartment they were met with many glares.

"What do you want?" Adrian asked annoyed as he stood up to block their way into the compartment.

"I must speak with my sister. Alone." Evan hissed at the Slytherin student.

"I doubt that..."

"It is not you I want to talk to, so get out of my way, snake. This is family business and therefore none of your concern." Evan pressed on.

"It is alright, Adrian. I will talk to him, but it will be the last time that I will do it." Rhiannon said as she stood up from her place and walked past Adrian. "There should be some empty compartments close by, lets get this over with before I change my mind." Rhiannon said coldly.

"If you don't return in ten minutes, we will come for you, Rhiannon." Aries stated from his place, getting a nod and a grateful smile from the girl. She knew that is was meant that they were worried about her, but for Evan and Gabriel it sounded like Aries was only permitting her such a short time frame to talk to her brother.

As Evan and Rhiannon disappeared down the corridor, Gabriel remained at the door of the compartment, glaring at all the people inside. His scowl deepened even further when he saw his sister among the people in there.

"Get lost, cousin. There is nothing for you to achieve here." Aries growled exasperated when Gabriel just wouldn't go away.

But Gabriel only sneered at him in return. "Don't think that I am blind to what you try to do to Rhiannon. I won't let you use her for your sick amusement. You won't corrupt her if I have a say in it. She deserves better than you."

"And you are the right person to decide her fate?" Aries asked mockingly. "You are so delusional that you can't even see that she makes her own decisions and that one of the decisions is that she does not like you in the slightest."

"Damn snake, I should..."

"You should leave, brother." Came from Catherine. So far she had observed the situation, but she knew that something had to be done before they would start drawing wands. She did not want to witness a fight, especially when her brother would risk getting hurt seriously.

"I am very disappointed to see you with these people, Cathy. Dad will be appalled once he hears of this." Gabriel said with a reproachful look.

"Then go and tell him if you must. He deems it fit to punish me for lesser offenses against his dogmas. But do yourself a favor and get back to the rest of your bullying friends." Catherine replied evenly. She had no doubt that her father would blow a gasket because of this, but she couldn't bring herself to care. But at least her words finally caused her brother to leave.

"Good work. I already thought that the fool would never leave us alone." Adrian said happily as he sat back down next to Catherine. She only nodded at him before she turned her attention to one of her school books until Rhiannon returned.

Terence though finally asked a question that had bothered him since the ball at Black Manor. "Say, Aries... what exactly are your families plans with Rhiannon? You act quite... protective sometimes."

At this question all people in the compartment looked expectantly at Aries, waiting for his answer. "My father apparently sees her as the most likely candidate for a marriage contract, but I think you all have guessed that much by now." The others simply nodded to that statement, but remained silent, waiting for him to continue. "And quite frankly I like to have Rhiannon around. She is a much more pleasant company, than the other girls my father had considered so far. It is most likely that she will be part of my life, no matter how you look at it and it is better to keep her safe and happy. I don't want her to hate me if she is to be mine."

* * *

It did not take long for Rhiannon and Evan to find an empty compartment where they could talk undisturbed. Rhiannon was not very keen on this talk, but she knew that Evan would haunt her for months if she did not allow him to speak his mind now.

"So... what do you want from me, Evan? Let us finish this once and for all so you won't bother me again." Rhiannon asked with a voice that was devoid of any emotion.

"I want an answer, dammit. Why are you acting like this? Why do you treat your family like you don't care about us?" Evan asked agitatedly.

"Do you really have to ask? Are you that blind to what has happened in the past?"

"Is this about mom and dad leaving you behind? They did that because they believed that it would be best for you. They explained it to me when I asked about why you weren't with us..." Evan replied with a sigh. "It was Dumbledore's idea to allow you a peaceful life without fear... without having to hide like we did."

Rhiannon narrowed her eyes at her brother when she heard that. But it wasn't just what he had said, but also the fact that he mentioned the headmaster's involvement. That was something that she had no knowledge of until now. Another reason for her to not trust the old man again.

"It does not change the fact that they were willing to abandon me, Evan. They betrayed me, left me behind. To them I was unimportant... negligible. The day they decided to send me away was the day they stopped being my family. In the twelve years of my life I have spent more than ten years with my great-uncle and my great-aunt. They are my family now and no words from you can change that." Rhiannon spoke in an almost compassionate manner to her brother, hoping that he would finally stop badgering her if she told him her view of things in a much more personal way than before.

"I do understand why... but still, we are siblings. I can't just forget that. No matter what you say right now, I won't give up. One day you will accept that I am your brother and we will be a family again." Evan declared loudly, a determined look on his face.

Rhiannon only shook her head sadly when she heard that. "Then you will only earn my resentment. But I see that you won't think this through." She then turned to leave the compartment. "You and I are neither siblings nor friends. Currently you are only an annoyance, Evan. Don't become an enemy." And with these parting words Rhiannon returned to her own compartment, leaving a shocked Evan behind.

* * *

School life quickly settled back into the usual flow, much to Rhiannon's relief. When she studied she could easily block out any thoughts about unwanted topics, because much to her chagrin her mother's parting words still bothered her again and again.

She could not understand how this woman could still claim to love her, even though her actions in the past had suggested otherwise. Lily Potter quickly became a sore subject for Rhiannon. She was careful to never call that woman her mother again, Lily Potter had never been a mother for her. The closest thing Rhiannon had to a mother was her great-aunt and Dorea Potter had never tried to fill this particular position. Rhiannon and Dorea had a close family relationship, but there was always this gap that could not be bridged. Dorea was Rhiannon's guardian, her aunt, but never a mother. No, because of Lily Potter, Rhiannon never had a mother figure, only a role model. And now that woman returned and claimed to love her. To Rhiannon it was an audacity that she claimed this. It was mind-boggling how this woman could claim that.

But Rhiannon did not want to ponder this any longer, so she always had to find a distraction. Studying, reading, even spending time with her fellow house mates. It did not matter what, as long as it kept her distracted. And then there was still the time she could spend in her refuge, away from everything. A place where she could be alone and secluded from the rest of the world and the problems of that world.

It was only a matter of time until some people would start to wonder where she always disappeared to and Rhiannon knew that eventually someone would ask the question. Much to her displeasure it took only a few weeks until Dumbledore of all people contacted her with the intention to talk about some... special business. So it came that her Defense teacher, Quirinus Quirrel, escorted her to the headmaster's office after her last lesson of that day.

Rhiannon walked calmly next to her teacher, wondering why exactly the man wanted to escort her instead of simply telling her the password. But it didn't take long before Quirrel broke the silence and started to talk.

"You are quite the curious person, Ms Potter. Not what one would expect from a girl with your... family background." Quirrel drawled smoothly as he watched her reaction.

Rhiannon though looked at him completely unaffected by his words, although she had to admit that she was more than surprised by his choice of words. "And what is it you have expected of me, professor?"

"The Potter's are mostly known as avid supporters of Headmaster Dumbledore, well the most prominent part of the family at least. Ever since they let the knowledge about that prophecy slip out..."

"I'm sorry to inform you, but I am not one of those vainglorious lapdogs of the headmaster. I hail from the true Potters that adhere to our societies customs and traditions." Rhiannon replied with a slightly miffed expression. The last thing she needed was for the teachers to treat her different because of her family. It was worse enough that Snape suddenly disliked just because of her father and brother.

"Quite curious indeed. But it is good to know that you follow our societies ancient customs. You might have heard that I had once been the Muggle studies teacher... but I learned that my fascination with those people had been sorely misplaced. Only by knowing our place in our own society we can hope to gain power and recognition. My sabbatical has taught me that." Quirrel said with a contemplative look.

"Am I right to assume that you joined up with a new master... one that is less inclined to agree with Dumbledore's view of our world?" Rhiannon asked with a look of suspicion on her face.

"You are an intelligent girl. A sharp minded student. People like you could make it far, as long as you know which side to support." Quirrel responded with a chuckle.

"I am neutral, professor. I disagree with Dumbledore's agenda, but that does not mean that I suddenly support your lord."

"Should things progress as before, then neutrality will be luxury that can be very difficult to maintain..." He let the sentence hang, the unspoken threat clear to the girl.

"While I am not averse to most of Lord Slytherin's political views, I must say that I sorely miss a clear answer to some questions. As long as I don't know what he really plans I won't pick a side. I won't let myself be pressured into doing things that are contradictory to my own convictions." Rhiannon stated with determination palpable in her voice.

"I see your point. Still, you should show at least some sign of goodwill towards my lord. Just in case..."

"This isn't about the interest of your lord alone. I am just one girl and not all that powerful or important. No, this is about your own reputation. Being the one to recruit the sister of Slytherin's supposedly greatest enemy... it would make you famous and crush the spirit of my so called family. Lord Slytherin would definitely reward you. But currently I am not important enough for him to order you to recruit me so this must be some personal agenda of yours..." Rhiannon said with a suspicious look.

"Indeed. But I see that there is not much that can be done right now. But soon I will approach you with a task that you will fulfill for me. Should you comply... it would be very rewarding and might even get the dark lord to allow you your neutrality when it comes to open hostilities." Quirrel replied with a hiss.

"We will see. But you better stop talking, we are almost at the old man's office. I doubt that he would approve of your new believes." Rhiannon spoke with an annoyed tone, unwilling to further listen to Quirrel's implied threats.

"Yes, we will speak more about this at a later date." Quirrel then looked at the Gargoyle that guarded the entrance to Dumbledore's office and spoke the password. "Until your next lesson, Ms Potter." And then he turned and walked away in a fast pace; not even looking back once.

Rhiannon entered Dumbledore's office with less hesitancy then the last time. She knew there was no avoiding such meeting and the only real question she had right now was who would be there with Dumbledore? Her father again, after all his failed attempts to talk to her even against her will... or worse, her mother... no Lily Potter, she refused to continue thinking about this person as her mother.

But much to her surprise there was no one except the old headmaster. "Ah Rhiannon, good that you could make it here so quickly." Dumbledore spoke with his ever benevolent voice.

"Is there an academic reason why you have summoned me, headmaster? Please don't waste more of your time on my family problems." Rhiannon replied quickly.

"In fact there is a personal reason why I have called you here today, but I can assure you that it has nothing to do with your family. No this is about what you saw in the Mirror of Erised." The old man said placidly before he handed Rhiannon an open book. "This is a very old rune book from my personal collection. You mentioned glowing runes on your arms, maybe you can identify some of them with the help of this book."

Rhiannon took the book and began skimming through it until she stopped. On one page she finally saw one rune that she remembered from the mirror image. She studied everything on the page intently before the old wizard reminded her of his presence with a chuckle.

"Have you found something that might help you, Rhiannon?" Dumbledore asked with obvious interest.

But Rhiannon remembered that she should not trust Dumbledore with any more information. No she wouldn't tell him anything about this. He already knew far too much, Rhiannon had no reason to trust him with anything more than what he already knew. So she quickly closed the book and put it down on the desk. But she remembered its name, determined to find it in Ravenclaw's library.

"Unfortunately not, headmaster. This book is extremely interesting, but none of the runes matched with what I have seen." Rhiannon lied with an impassive expression, hopeful that the old wizard would not pry any further.

"I see..." Dumbledore replied obviously unconvinced. "It is a pity, but we will just have to continue searching then. You may go now."

Rhiannon did not reply anything, but she quickly left the office in the hope that the old headmaster would no longer bother with her problem. But she was wrong if she believed that Dumbledore would give up this easily. He had seen her reaction to one particular page and knew that she had recognized something. But what worried him more was this sudden lack of trust. He knew that Rhiannon had not much trust in him from the beginning, but when she confided in him what she saw in the mirror he had hope that he could gain more trust by helping her. But her reaction just now had shown that the complete opposite was the case now. But why didn't she trust him at all any longer? He couldn't help himself but wonder about the conundrum that was Rhiannon Potter.

When Rhiannon finally left the headmaster's office it was already time for dinner, so she walked towards the Great Hall, quietly pondering her current situation. She ignored most students that she passed, only greeting those few that she knew and liked as she finally walked down an empty corridor. She was lost in thoughts when she nearly bumped into a smaller boy, one of the first year Slytherins.

"Oh, I'm sorry..." Rhiannon mumbled absent-minded.

"Watch where you are going, damn half blood." The boy spat at her with a look of contempt. "You think just because Black likes to toy around with you that you can boss around your betters."

Rhiannon narrowed her eyes in anger, but refrained from snapping at the haughty boy. She knew who he was, he was little Draco Malfoy; Aries arrogant cousin. But instead of showing her anger even more she only remained silent, something that infuriated Draco only further.

"What? Cat got your tongue? You are just the child of a mud blood, never forget your place..." Draco couldn't even finish his sentence before he was hit by a spell that grew large boils on his face.

"Stay away from my sister, you damn snake." Rhiannon couldn't suppress the groan as she saw Evan and Gabriel storm towards her with raised wands and furious expressions.

"Are you alright, Rhia?" Evan asked with concern.

"I'm fine, your presence is not necessary, Evan." Rhiannon snapped back.

"Get away from her Malfoy, slowly and keep your hands where I can see them." Gabriel growled at his cousin.

"Not even able to fight your own battles, half blood? How typical that you need your blood traitor cohorts to fight for you while you try to usurp..." Malfoy hissed before he pulled out his wand.

"Shut up, Malfoy. One more word and I will..." Gabriel started, but he was quickly interrupted by a stern voice that sent cold shivers down all their spines.

"Mr Black, you better not finish this sentence." Suddenly appeared Professor McGonnagall; the old witch looked sternly at all four students, daring them to do anything foolish. "Now be so kind as to tell me what you have been doing here."

"That damn Ravenclaw sicked her brother and his friend on me." Draco exclaimed loudly before the yelling resumed once more.

"Silence, all of you. Ms Potter is this true?" McGonnagall looked at Rhiannon with a disappointed look as she asked.

"No professor, I walked down this corridor as I bumped into Malfoy. He has been insulting me until those two arrived and started throwing around curses." Rhiannon stated calmly, but she could see that the old witch did not really believe it to be this simple. And of course Draco loudly protested, calling her a liar.

"This is an outrage, students fighting in the hallways. I am very disappointed with all of you." At this she looked especially long at Rhiannon. "All four of you will spent your Saturday morning in detention with Caretaker Filch. Now go to the Great Hall before I double those detentions."

Draco, Evan and Gabriel started protesting loudly against the detention, but to no avail. Rhiannon meanwhile walked away, fuming that she got into trouble even though she had done nothing wrong. But she knew better than to argue with McGonnagall, during the last months she couldn't shake the feeling that the old witch disliked her for some reason. Rhiannon had a hunch what the may have caused that; she knew that McGonnagall had a soft spot for James Potter and since Rhiannon apparently caused the poor man only trouble... she did not really want to think about it. She just wished to end this day without any more unwanted attention from students and teachers alike.

* * *

**A/N: Okay, only a few more chapters left before I have reuploaded all chapters that Thaedys has written for this story. So far the interest in the story has been nearly none existent, so chances are pretty low that Thaedys will agree to finish this story. I will try my best to convince him, but I don't have much hope. Well three more chapters to go...**


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8: Secrets

_If there is one things that we magical humans have not payed enough attention to, then it is the soul, the greatest treasure we all possess. Other races have whole branches of magic dedicated solely to unveiling the secrets of their souls. The body is nothing more than a mortal shell, that houses the soul and learning about ones soul allows us to learn from our own past lives. At least the non human races think so. I wonder if that is really accurate or whether the human believe, that the soul dies with body, is indeed correct. Only further studies can answer that._

_~ Exotic branches of magic – Part I – Soul Magic, From the Journals of Rowena Ravenclaw~_

Rhiannon couldn't help herself but feel annoyed with her current situation. Detention, for the first time in her time at Hogwarts. It was shameful. Aunt Dorea would scold her for hours, once she returned home from school. And to make things worse, she also had to endure the company of the three boys in the school she disliked the most during that detention. It wasn't even her fault, but there was no use in arguing with a professor who had already judged her because of her family situation.

Aries was outraged when he heard about the detention and how Rhiannon was involved. He offered her to have his father use his position in the board of governors to recant the unjustified punishment, but Rhiannon asked him to not do that. She didn't want to bother a man of the political importance such as the current Lord Black with her minor problems. Oh how would she look in the eyes of the man, she wouldn't be able to look him in the face again. It would be an even greater shame for her to call outside help every time she had a small problem.

Aries next reaction was to seek his cousin Draco and teach him a valuable lesson. He had warned him before about his behavior towards Rhiannon, but Draco had obviously not listened. Now Aries would have to resort to other means to bring his point across. But again Rhiannon stopped him from doing anything, not wanting him to end in an equally disgraceful situation like her own. She was happy that he wanted to help, but she was not okay with the methods Aries had contemplated.

But all dreading and grumbling was useless in the end. On the evening of the first Friday after the incident Rhiannon stood together with Gabriel, Evan and Draco in front of Filch's office, waiting for the vile caretaker to arrive and tell them what they would have to do as their punishment.

"There you are! About time, always too late. If I had my way you would be hanging heads down from a wall in the dungeons until you learn your lesson..." Filch muttered derisively. "Follow me, your punishment will take place outside of the castle."

"What exactly do you mean, outside the castle?" Draco asked with barely hidden contempt for the squib caretaker of the school.

"Professor McGonagall has decided that you all will help the gamekeeper with his duties... in the forest." Filch muttered. "Hopefully those monsters there will eat you, that would teach all others a lesson they won't forget."

"Are you insane, no student is allowed to enter the forest. It's forbidden for a reason, you damn squib." Draco said outraged as they slowly, though reluctantly, followed Filch towards the hut where Hagrid, the gamekeeper of Hogwarts, was already waiting for them.

"Another word, insolent child, and you will spend the rest of the year in detention with me. And believe me, I have worse tasks than this." Filch sneered at the haughty boy.

"As much as I loathe to admit it, but Malfoy is right. You can't just send us into the forest. It is strictly forbidden to do that with students. I demand to speak with the headmaster about this." Evan said determinedly.

"The headmaster knows about your punishment and he has approved of it. Now be silent or the forest will be the least of your problems."

Rhiannon watched the scene with a pensive expression. She felt very apprehensive about the idea of going into the Forbidden Forest. Technically she had already been in there several times; but that was always in the tower, a safe sanctuary hidden deep inside the forest. What monsters would be waiting inside this forest, waiting for some foolish child to cross their path. She shuddered at the thought. But she knew that her aunt Dorea would make Dumbledore regret allowing this. That knowledge gave Rhiannon at least some solace. Now all she had to do was survive the night.

"Ah, there you are. Hope they didn't cause anymore trouble to you." Hagrid said as the group stopped in front of him and his big, black dog.

"Tche, insolent brats. You should just leave them out there in the forest. Let them find their way back on their own." Filch said before he turned around and left them.

"This is all your fault, Malfoy." Evan said, feeling more at ease in the presence of the half giant he had befriended during his time at this school. He was sure Hagrid would never let something bad happen to them... or stop him from giving the Slytherin boy a piece of his mind.

"Oh yeah, Potter? If it wasn't for that upstart sister of yours..."

"Keep my sister out of this or I will..." Evan said angrily. Even though Rhiannon told him in no uncertain terms that she did not even consider him family, he still felt that he should protect her, especially from Snakes. One day it would surely earn him her recognition.

"Enough, you two. Stop this now or I will have to report you to the headmaster." Hagrid said in an attempt to look stern, though he failed badly at that.

"What exactly are we supposed to do in there?" Gabriel finally asked as he pointed towards the forest with a look of suspicion on his face.

"We are going to find some rare herbs for Professor Snape in the forest." Hagrid stated confidently.

"Herbs? In the middle of the night?" Evan had stopped bickering with Draco when he heard what their detention entailed. He didn't really know how to react to that revelation. Laugh about it? Be worried about being sent into the forest at night?

"They are the kind of herbs that can be found easier at night. I've got his lists here, each of you take a list and a satchel and then we will head out." Hagrid explained; then he handed out small pieces of parchment, the potion master's neat handwriting easily recognizable. "To get this done faster we will split up..." He looked at the four students before him; Evan and Draco had returned to their bickering while Gabriel stood at the sideline, waiting for the moment they would draw wands on each other. Rhiannon though kept her distance from all three boys, as she tried to look disinterested with the entire situation. "Alright, Malfoy and Evan will come with me. Gabriel, you will go with Ms Potter. But don't venture far into the forest, you will find plenty of the herbs around here."

Draco sneered at Hagrid when he heard that he would have to go with both Potter and the half giant into the forest. Evan looked equally displeased, the idea of leaving Rhiannon alone without any adult to watch her in the forest just wouldn't sit right with him, even with Gabriel there to protect her.

"Alright. Let's go, Rhia." Gabriel said happily as he walked over to the girl and offered her his arm, which she duly ignored. "Do not fear, I will protect you with my life if necessary. A Gryffindor always protects the damsels in distress." He smirked at her and promptly received a cold look from Rhiannon. She did not like to be addressed as a 'damsel in distress'.

"Just move and try not to get yourself killed. Gryffindor's, house of the brave... more like house of the martyrs. Suicidal the whole lot of them." Rhiannon muttered to herself. She picked up a satchel and a lamp, before she walked ahead, not waiting for Gabriel. She wanted to get over with this ordeal, getting out of this unscathed. She couldn't care less about the herbs for Snape, she wouldn't risk anything for that man, not after he had treated her so poorly just because of father's presence and her brother's inability to brew a simple potion correctly. She wouldn't stray too far from this hut, only out of sight of that half giant, nothing more.

Gabriel hurried after her, intent on not letting her out of his sight for the rest of the night. This was a perfect chance for him. A chance to finally talk to his best friend's sister without being interrupted by those evil Snakes.

The forest was quiet during these late hours, not much could be seen. Without a lamp, Rhiannon was sure she would not be able to see the way, much less any of those herbs Snape wanted them to collect. Some fog slowly crept up from the ground, obscuring her sight even more.

"Rhia, wait." Gabriel had caught up to her by now, a stupid grin etched on his face as he walked next to his best friend's sister. "Why so eager to find those stupid plants. It's not like Snape will thank us for collecting them."

"Don't you think I know that, Gabriel. I just wanted to get away from those fools." She replied curtly, not even once looking at the boy.

"You shouldn't be so hard on Evan all the time." Gabriel looked at her imploringly, but again it was no use, her gaze was still fixed on the path before them.

"I just want him to stay away from me. I don't care for him or for his parents, but he stubbornly ignores my wishes and bothers me and my friends every single day."

"He cares for you. You are his sister. Don't you realize how dangerous the people you associate with are?" He jumped in front of her, stopping her so he could look at her face.

"He is no brother of mine!" Rhiannon hissed at Gabriel, a displeased frown on her face. "And don't talk ill about Aries and his friends. Unlike you and your band of misfits, they have not caused me any grief so far. Aries especially has always been a true gentleman and a real friend. He cares for what I want and respects my wishes. You could learn a lot from him, Gabriel."

"As if." Gabriel scoffed. "Rhia, he and the rest of his family are dangerous. They are dark, they support the Lord Slytherin, a man that is firmly set against muggleborns and half bloods such as yourself."

"Is that why you hate him? Because his family believes something different? Because they are dark whereas your family is light? Or is it more that you are envious of him?"

"Why should I be envious?" Gabriel asked challengingly.

"You are both pure bloods, but unlike you, he is accepted in this society. He is the heir of the Black family and all its power and wealth. And all that despite his father being only the second born son. Must hurt to know that all that escaped your grasp because of your father's misbehavior." She didn't like being this vicious, she actually disliked acting like this. But she also disliked the persistence of Gabriel and Evan when they followed her in their constant attempts to disgrace her in the eyes of the proper society.

"What are you talking about? I am glad that I am not forced to endure that awful society. I don't want that so called power or anything else that comes with the cursed Black main family."

"You know nothing about the society that I was raised in. You don't know the people, you don't know the customs. You only know what your father has told you, a man that has been spurned by his family because of his petty teenage crisis." Rhiannon replied tersely.

"You know nothing about my family, Rhiannon." Gabriel said rather coldly.

"And you don't know anything about mine. Or my friends for the matter. I really wonder how someone as open minded as Catherine can be related to a blockhead like you."

"Rhiannon we only worry about you. Those dark wizards are bad news, no matter what they have tried to make you believe." Gabriel replied more imploringly.

"It is no use talking to you. Just stay quiet and leave me alone for the rest of the night." Rhiannon snapped at him.

"Rhia... Why are you so stubborn..." He suddenly stopped mid sentence. "Did you hear that?" But Rhiannon ignored him, kept on walking away. "Rhiannon?" He asked again, but no answer came from the girl that walked slightly ahead of him now. "Rhia?" He asked more vehemently.

"WHAT? I told you to leave me in peace." Again she snapped at Gabriel, her anger slowly rising. She turned around looking at him with a furious expression. "Do you only exist to do the opposite of what I ask you to?"

"I heard something. Maybe some animal is nearby." Gabriel replied quickly, ignoring her rant completely.

Rhiannon suddenly paled as she looked at Gabriel, or more precisely at what stood not far behind him. "Ahm... G...Gabriel..."

"Yeah?"

"Run..." She said almost hoarsely.

"What?"

"RUN YOU IDIOT!" She pointed at something behind him before she turned around to escape herself.

Gabriel turned around to see what had her so frightened, expecting anything. But he wouldn't show fear, he was a Gryffindor after all. He was brave. But all ideas of bravery were quickly forgotten, when he saw a giant spider only a few feet away from him. "Oh shit." Gabriel mumbled before he ran away as well, following the path that Rhiannon had taken.

He followed the dim light of Rhiannon's lamp as he ran, hopefully fast enough to escape the giant spider. He was in a better shape than Rhiannon, all thanks to his Quidditch training, so he quickly caught up with the fleeing girl as she bolted through the forest, uncaring where she was going at that moment.

"Rhiannon... stop!" Gabriel yelled out between breaths. "I believe its gone." But Rhiannon had either not heard him or simply ignored his words as she continued running. At least until a root ended her mad escape, rather abruptly to boot. With a loud thud she landed on the ground, her arms folded protectively in front of her face to avoid injuries.

* * *

The cold air of the early February night gently swept through the halls of Hogwarts as Aries and his friends waited in the Entrance Hall of the school. They waited for the girl who had occupied Aries mind for the last few weeks, ever since they had returned from their winter holidays. He was no idiot, he knew what interest his parents had in his relationship with this girl; not that it bothered him, quite the opposite. He had grown quite accustomed to her presence and started to value her friendship.

Especially his mother's insistence to keep an eye on the girl left him wondering though. He had learned that Rhiannon and his mother had talked privately during the Yule ball, but he did not know what they had conversed about. Whatever it was, his mother had taken an interest in Rhiannon and instructed him to keep her safe from the influence of Dumbledore and his lackeys. Easier said than done, especially now that she was off somewhere on the school grounds with her brother and his idiot best friend; alone with only the Gamekeeper being there to keep an eye on them. The Gamekeeper that was known to be a zealous follower of Dumbledore.

So her stood there, in the entrance hall, waiting for Rhiannon's return; if only to ensure himself that those blasted Gryffindor's had not managed to somehow hurt her in one of their foolish attempts to look heroic. His own friends, Adrian and Terence, had followed him to keep him company. To pass the time, as they had said. But they all knew there was a different reason for that. Slytherins never travel alone inside this school. Being alone made them an easy target for some foolish Gryffindors that would take the house rivalry too far. Strength in numbers, the first rule that every Slytherin first year learns on their first evening in the school.

But they did not remain undisturbed for long. It was not a Gryffindor student that eventually happened upon the Slytherin trio, but someone decidedly worse in Aries opinion. Of all the teachers it had to be Minerva McGonagall that had to patrol this hall of the school.

The stern witch looked displeased at the students as she walked over to them. He lips were a thin line as she looked coldly at the three Slytherins. "Mr Black, Mr Pucey, Mr Higgs, why are you still out here? It is nearly curfew, back to your common room or else you will serve detention."

"It is not curfew yet, professor, neither will it be for at least another thirty or so minutes." Aries replied just as coldly.

"I advise to watch your tone, Mr Black. I won't abide disrespect."

"Only when you are disrespected, professor." Aries almost snarled.

"What was that, Mr Black? Would you mind repeating that last part?"

"I believe you understood me very well, professor. It was blatant disrespect you showed Rhiannon, when you punished her for something she did not do, without even letting her explain to boot. If that is not disrespect than I believe that both of us are having a very amiable chat at the moment."

"Ms Potter has..."

"Done absolutely nothing. She had the misfortune to be in the middle of a fight between my idiot cousins and her inept brother. And you just assumed to know what has happened without listening to everyone involved. But rest assured, I have already filed an official complaint against you for this treatment of a young lady. I am aware that it is not great enough an offense to get you into trouble, but as they say, 'the squeaky wheel gets the oil'. I am sure that many more will follow."

The old witch looked icily at the student, but refrained from commenting on his last words. She knew she should have expected no less from the spawn of Regulus Black. The man was the very model of a Black, both in looks and behavior. Of course he would teach this sense of superiority to his son as well.

It was then that a distraught looking Hagrid entered the castle with Draco and Evan in tow, the latter looking worriedly around as the half giant stopped in front of Professor McGonagall. Whatever was on his mind, he was definitely worried greatly.

"Hagrid, what is the meaning of this scene?" The witch asked sternly.

"We lost two students in the forest, professor." Hagrid panted heavily, apparently he had run all the way here from the forest to report his blunder.

"What do you mean, you lost two students, you oaf?" Aries asked outraged. Four students left the castle, Rhiannon among them. But now only two returned and Rhiannon was not with them.

"Mr Black!" McGonagall chastised the Slytherin loudly. "That will cost you 10 points and three nights of detention with me. I told you I won't abide disrespect towards the school staff."

"Disrespect? Once the board of governors hears about this, that... man will be gone from this school." Aries replied defiantly. "And you with him if I have my way. This is your responsibility. If any harm has come to Rhiannon I will see you behind bars." Aries looked angrily at the two adults. He knew his parents would be angry once they heard about this. His father would try everything in his power to get proper punishment for those responsible. "What are you just standing around here? Go and do something before Rhiannon gets killed inside that stupid forest!"

He knew that by himself he could do only little to help. He would not be allowed anywhere near the Forbidden Forest. All he could do now was inform his father. He knew it would be better to do this quickly, lest Dumbledore might try to sweep this under the rug in one of his insane political maneuvers.

* * *

The forest had become even darker now as the hours slowly trickled by. It was well past midnight now, darkness creeping up all around the two students that now sat alone in the forest. To find a way out of their predicament seemed impossible at that moment, if the darkness would not lead them even further into the forest, the monsters would end them eventually as they came out at night to hunt.

"Rhia, maybe we should try to find a way out. How difficult can it be, I mean Hagrid gets in and out of this forest every time with no worries of finding a way back." Gabriel argued calmly. Inside he was scared. He would be an idiot not to be intimidated by his current situation. But he wouldn't show it on the outside. His pride as a Gryffindor forbids it. And he wouldn't show fear in front of Rhiannon. To him it was his duty now to keep her safe.

"Arguing with that gamekeeper's lack of common sense won't help us in our situation. We don't know where we are, we don't know where the castle is and most importantly we don't know what creatures we might encounter now." Rhiannon replied in annoyance as she used a simple spell to clean her skirt that got dirty when she fell.

"But..."

"Be silent, you fool. I hear something." Rhiannon hissed.

Gabriel shut up immediately, trying intently to hear whatever she had heard before. "That noise... hooves?" He asked curiously.

Rhiannon only nodded in concurrence.

"But from what Hagrid told us about the inhabitants of this forest there are only two species with hooves. Unicorns and Centaurs."

"Both are preferable over the rest of this forest's inhabitants." Rhiannon said calmly as she heard the sound getting closer.

Only moments later a large, horse-like creature broke through the undergrowth. It was Centaur, long red hair swaying wildly as he entered their little hideout with large strides.

"This is no place for foals to be." He said with a deep, doleful tone as he looked at Gabriel with narrowed eyes.

"Well... we kind of got lost when we ran from a spider..." Gabriel said with as sheepish expression. "Would you be able to help us get out of this forest?"

The Centaur looked surprised as Gabriel said 'we'. Obviously the Centaur had only seen Gabriel and not realized that there was another human nearby. He looked around, searching, quickly finding Rhiannon sitting on the ground, leaning against a tree.

The Centaur looked intently at the girl before his eyes widened dramatically. "My name is Ronan, a hunter of my tribe." The Centaur said as he slowly approached Rhiannon. "It would be my honor to assist you, ancient one." He was courteous towards Rhiannon, much to both student's surprise. When he spoke to Gabriel only moments before, he seemed very distrustful, if not slightly hostile towards him.

"Um... thank you, Ronan." Rhiannon replied in her confusion as she slowly stood up from the ground and brushed the last dirt of her skirt. "Would you mind helping us to get to safety, Ronan?" She asked with a carefully respectful tone. The Centaur's reaction to her made no sense, but she was sure that she did not want Ronan angry at her. She would stand no chance against him.

"It will be my honor, ancient one. Long have my people awaited your return. To aid you is a privilege." Ronan replied just as courteous as before.

"You have waited for me?" Rhiannon asked even more confused than before.

"Indeed. The stars have foretold us your return. My kind has roamed the forest for months, searching for you or at least signs of your arrival. I shall escort you to a safe place." He suddenly went down on his knees in front of her, but he still towered several heads over her. "Please sit on my back, ancient one, this way I can bring you to safety much faster."

Rhiannon hesitated, disturbed by the Centaur's behavior. For a centaur to show a human respect like this was generally unheard of. But for a Centaur to offer a human to ride on him like a common horse... that just did not happen. Yet Ronan had just offered it to her.

"But what about Gabriel? He needs to get away from here as well." Rhiannon said slowly. As much as she disliked Gabriel, she did not want to see him killed in this forest.

"The human..." Ronan said with a disgruntled look, "...can come along if he must. But it would still be safer for you to be on my back, ancient one. Most creatures will be deterred from attacking you while you sit on my back. There are still many creatures that would possibly wish you harm."

Rhiannon nodded only once before she stepped forward and sat on the Centaur's back. She nearly fell when Ronan stood up with in one fell swoop. It took some moments for her to find enough hold without pulling the Centaur's hair, finally she had her hands on his shoulders to steady herself.

"Come, human, we must not waste time." Ronan said to Gabriel before he started walking without looking at the boy.

For some time the two students and their Centaur escort traveled in silence. Gabriel still grumbled about the cold treatment he got from Ronan, while Rhiannon's mind was filled with questions. Questions that she could not find any answers for. What did Ronan mean? Why did he call her 'ancient one'? Was this somehow connected to what she had seen in the Mirror of Erised?

"Ronan..." Rhiannon finally spoke up.

"Yes, ancient one? Is there anything you need?"

"Could explain what you meant when you said that your kind has awaited my arrival?"

"For millenia my kind has roamed the forests and plains of this world, never forgetting our past, our origins and traditions. Our tales and prophesies. Our oldest and most revered prophecy foretold the return of the ancient one and our role in that return. The stars have finally aligned in the same way they did when the ancient one disappeared from this world, so we knew your return was near. Now we are here, awaiting your words and guidance." Ronan said with a voice beaming of pride.

"But... why me? How can you be sure that it is me?"

"Humans have long lost the ability to feel magic, but we have not. Your magic gives you away, ancient one."

"So Rhiannon is some kind of deity or something like that to your people?" Gabriel asked in his confusion. This all made no sense to him.

"Not a goddess, foolish human. The gods never walk this earth." Ronan chastised Gabriel sternly.

"We have nearly arrived, ancient one. The reclusive tower will provide you the safety you desire." Ronan said as they entered a creek that was dominated by a large tower, built out of the same stone as the castle.

Rhiannon's eyes widened when she saw the building. She had an inkling what building this was. On the one hand she was relieved that she would be back in the safety of her refuge. Especially after the unwanted excitement of the last few hours she yearned for the solitude and safety of this place. But to her horror Gabriel would see it now. He was one of the last persons she wanted anywhere near this place. He and his foolish Gryffindor cronies would loot this place and take away all books they would deem as dark, all for their zealous pursuit of the light. Or worse he would tell Dumbledore about this place, she would never be allowed to return should the headmaster find out about the Refuge. No matter what the Grey Lady had said. But what could she do now? Leave him outside to die, just for the sake of the knowledge hidden here? She knew she couldn't do that, she couldn't make such a decision. All she could hope for was that she could somehow either trick Gabriel or reason with him.

"Thank you, Ronan." Gabriel said through gritted teeth.

Rhiannon meanwhile had dismounted from Ronan and slowly walked towards the large door of the tower. She had seen it from inside, but never dared open it. She turned around once more to look at the Centaur that had caused her another headache with the things he had told her. But she was grateful, knowing that without him she might not have made it out of the forest alive.

"You have my gratitude, Ronan. Return to your tribe and tell them about our meeting." She was calm as she said this, the well trained look of pure blood indifference on her face. She did not understand why Ronan seemed to defer to her, but she wouldn't throw this chance away. Maybe she could learn more about that prophecy he mentioned during future meetings. But for that she needed to assert her higher position, to make sure that he would comply. "We shall meet again, under better circumstances next time." And then she turned around and placed her hand on the large door. A pulse of magic later the door seemed to recognize her and opened soundlessly. Gabriel followed her silently as she entered to tower, leaving Ronan alone in the forest.

* * *

The tower was still the same as she had left if hours ago. Of course, no once except her knew how to get here. And except Gabriel no over living being in the castle knew about this tower's existence. Tiredly Rhiannon plopped down on a couch in the common room in a position that her aunt would have likely called undignified.

Gabriel looked at the room in awe before he sat down next to Rhia. "What is this place?"

"A part of Ravenclaw territory that no Gryffindor should have seen." Rhiannon replied with a frown. Of course it was a lie, but every house had its secrets, so why should Gabriel see through her lie.

"And why is no one here then? A room full of books and no Raven to read them, sounds fishy."

"It is the middle of the night, Gabriel. All other students are asleep." Rhia deadpanned.

"Still... there is something you are not telling me. Has this place something to do with what the Centaur called you?" Rhiannon raised an eyebrow in surprise. She would not have expected a Gryffindor to be able to connect these dots so easily. She had expected him to be his brash and foolhardy self and believe everything he is told.

"This place is none of your business, Gabriel." She said coldly as she watched him to gauge his reaction.

"So I am right. What are you hiding, Rhia? Does the headmaster know about all of this?"

"Keep Dumbledore out of this. The old man sticks his nose where it does not belong far too often." Rhia hissed.

Gabriel looked solemnly at the girl as he stood up. "Rhia, whatever this is, you might need the help of the headmaster. That Centaur said there was a prophecy about you. Prophesies are no simple business. Just think about how the prophecy about your brother has changed the lives of you and your family. We should tell him immediately." He started looking around for an exit, hoping that the tower was somehow connected to the castle.

"You will not tell Dumbledore anything about this, Gabriel." Rhiannon ordered loudly.

"Or what? Rhiannon this might be dangerous... please ask the headmaster for help, you will need it."

"The headmaster is not to be trusted, Gabriel. If you had just a little common sense you would see that. But you are blind, just like your father. But let's make this clear, even for a foolish Gryffindor. If you go to Dumbledore about this, I will have to leave this place. I will not allow him to control me like he does with my brother. And should I be forced to leave I will make sure that my so called family will never see me again. So if you want to break Evan's little heart by driving away his sister, go ahead and snitch to Dumbledore." With grim satisfaction she saw the worried look on Gabriel's face as she finished her threat.

"You wouldn't..."

"I would. Aunt Dorea would readily send me to any other school of my choosing. She actually preferred Beauxbatons, but relented when Uncle Charlus wanted me to go here because of the family tradition."

"You do know that you might be playing with fire, Rhiannon? This is not some game..." He sighed as he looked at her with a reproachful look that would have made Dumbledore proud. But he had no effect on the girl. "Fine. I will not talk to anyone about this... but promise me one thing, Rhiannon."

"That depends on what you want." She replied curtly.

"If you need help or have some problem, do not hesitate to ask for my help. You may not like me all that much, but you can trust me. I will keep your secrets and have your back if you need me. Just promise me that."

For some moments Rhiannon remained silent, contemplating his words. Could she really trust him? In the end she had little choice. She needed him to keep her secrets. "Fine. I can promise you that. But until the moment I ask for your help, stay out of my way. The last time you wanted to help me we ended in that forest."

"We will see, Rhiannon, we will see." Gabriel stated with a small smile now. Maybe this would at least help them to become closer. Now he just would have to keep her safe. With or without Dumbledore's help, he was confident that would be able to do that if he tried his best.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9: Hidden inside

_Curiosity has always lead me to the most astonishing discoveries. In all my years of traveling I have seen things I would have never believed to exist, had I not seen them with my own eyes. But what amazed me the most was the ever recurring realization that the most stunning secrets are already hidden inside of us. We only have to find a way to unlock them._

_~Traveling the World, From the Journals of Rowena Ravenclaw~_

When Rhiannon and Gabriel left the hidden tower and returned to Hogwarts, they found the school in an uproar. Apparently the news that two students had gone missing in the Forbidden Forest had spread like a wildfire and now every single adult in the castle was on the way to the forest, to save the unfortunate children. From one window they could see the group preparing for their dangerous task. Even for a fully trained wizard the forest was still a dangerous place to be. At night even more so, than during daytime.

"They sure seem busy." Gabriel commented lightly, a mischievous grin on his face.

"Are you really this ignorant or just dumb?" Rhiannon deadpanned. "They are searching for us. We need to alert the teachers to our presence before some really gets hurt."

"The headmaster's office? He might be able to do something to call back all of them at once." Gabriel offered with a thoughtful expression. But the silly smirk from before quickly broke through again. He still found the entire situation hilarious.

"As much as I loath to admit it, your idea has merit. Let's hurry, I just want to get this over with, so I can have a shower and at least some sleep tonight." Rhiannon groaned slightly before she walked away in the direction of Dumbledore's office.

By now the hallways of the school were almost abandoned. Most likely the Prefects had been ordered to keep all students inside their common rooms as all the teachers and the rest of the staff were out to search. Not even the ghosts could be seen. It was eerily quiet. An unnerving silence.

Though neither of them would openly admit it, both Rhiannon and Gabriel were happy when they had finally arrived at the entrance to the office. Even when the large gargoyle, that guarded the entrance, eyed them suspiciously as the two students came closer.

Before Rhiannon could say anything Gabriel stepped forwards and patted the Gargoyle's head almost affectionately. "Guess who's back." He said grinning. "Mars Bars, we are here to see the headmaster." Without protest the Gargoyle stepped aside to let them pass, much to Rhiannon's surprise.

"I don't even want to know why you know the password to the headmaster's office." She muttered darkly.

"Ah, he is really nice you know. Always has sweets and an open ear when you need help." At the last part he looked pointedly at Rhiannon, but she didn't notice it, as she had already started to climb the stairs. "Anyway, Evan and I are up there to visit him every now and then. It's always a blast."

"The man is headmaster, he should follow his duties instead of fooling around with two nitwits."

"You hurt me, Rhiannon, such awful words. And here I hoped this ordeal has brought us closer." With a mock hurt expression Gabriel whined behind her, only to be ignored once more. But he wouldn't be deterred this easily. He now shared one of her biggest secrets, that had to mean at least something. She may have managed to keep the password to that tower a secret from him, but he would find it out eventually and find out what she was really hiding from all of them. But he still hoped that he might be able to befriend her enough, to get her to tell him by herself.

When they stood in front of the final door to the office they could already hear loud arguing from inside. Usually the office was charmed to be sound proof so no one could eavesdrop, but the last person to enter had not fully closed the door and now everyone in earshot could listen. Rhiannon immediately recognized the voice of the outraged person, that gave Dumbledore an ear full.

"Is this how you lead your school? Sending students into that death trap of a forest with that simpleton you hired as gamekeeper? If anything has happened to my niece I will have your head, Dumbledore. Yours and the head of the shrew that punished my niece for something she obviously has not done!"

"Please, Lady Potter, calm down. All of our staff are members currently searching for Rhiannon and Gabriel. No harm will befall them. I'm sure that they will be safely back inside the castle before dawn." Dumbledore replied calmly. "In fact, I believe we have some visitors. Please don't just stand there, feel free to enter."

Rhiannon and Gabriel were a bit surprised that the old wizard had found them out so quickly, but they complied and quietly entered the office.

"Rhiannon!" Dorea Black immediately ran over to her niece, a worried look on her face. Charlus followed not far behind, a more relieved look visible on from him.

"I'm fine, Aunt Dorea. A bit dirty and tired, but otherwise unhurt." Rhiannon said quickly as Dorea started to fuss over her niece. As stern as she always acted with the girl, Dorea Potter cared a great deal about her niece. She always only had her foster daughter's well being in mind.

"Just look at you, you must be traumatized by this ordeal." With fury the old witch turned towards Dumbledore, her eyes promising a painful death to anyone who would dare to stand in her way. "You will pay for this. Just look at her, all worn out, it is a miracle that she was not hurt badly out in that forest! What kind of idiot allows for students to enter this deathtrap? I have half a mind to take my niece home and have her finish her education at Beauxbatons instead. At least she would learn proper subjects there and would not be in danger because of your foolishness."

"Aunt Dorea, please I am fine. All I need is a shower and a good night's rest." Rhiannon insisted as she wriggled out of her aunt's firm hold. "Can I please leave now, I really would like to leave this entire night behind me as soon as possible."

"Of course, my dear. Go and rest, your uncle and I will take care of things here." With a gentle smile the old witch sent her niece away, much to the protest of the headmaster, who still had some questions he would have wanted to be answered. But fortunately for Dumbledore, Gabriel was still present, so at least he could be asked.

* * *

For several days Rhiannon had not been able to find any real rest. Nearly all the time people were around her, bothering her. All because of the incident during the detention. One would have thought that in a school full of children and teenagers there would be many topics of interest, but apparently all of the school only cared for things that had to do with the Potter name. People literally pestered her about details, but so far she was very reluctant to tell anything.

Gabriel had no such problems. Happily he recounted the story of their adventure in the forest. The appearance of the giant spider, which caused his friend Ron to whimper in fear the every time he heard about it. All was told, except for the meeting with the Centaur and the tower in the forest. He kept his promise to never tell a living soul about what he had seen. So far it was the only things that Rhiannon was grateful for when it came to Gabriel Black.

Much to Rhiannon's ever growing ire Evan had become even more protective of her as it seemed. Though he was more subtle about it now, she could still see him watching over her from a distance whenever he could. But not just Evan, her father, too, watched her like a hawk now. There were even rumors that he had somehow arranged with Dumbledore that from now on he would supervise all her detentions, not that she planned to land herself in detention again.

Much to everyone's ire Dumbledore had wriggled out of punishment once more. Stating that the students were never intended to enter the forest, but simply collect herbs on the outskirts, he made it look like an unfortunate accident. No one was punished, but at least the headmaster's lackeys were now under close scrutiny from the school Governors.

The school year finally entered its final phase. The last few weeks, the last exams. Soon the second term would be over and the students would be sent home again. Not a moment too soon in Rhiannon's opinion. She craved a moment of piece and solitude, due to all the attention people still payed her, she had not even been able to return to her refuge ever since that night in the forest. It was frustrating.

And there was still the matter of one teacher watching Rhiannon with a strange interest that did not revolve around protecting her from any danger. Quirinus Quirrel still had plans that Rhiannon would rather avoid. But her luck was definitely faulty this school year. One evening when left the library after long hours of studying for her last exam he was already waiting for her, an impatient look on his face.

"Ms Potter." He said pointedly. "The time has come. Now you can prove yourself useful." He said as he guided her away. For any other student it must have looked like a teacher escorting a student to a detention, but to all those who knew Rhiannon at least a bit it was obvious that something was afoul. The girl looked almost weary, a great difference to her usually calm and indifferent look.

"Who says that I must help you?" Rhiannon asked with narrowed eyes. She really wanted to turn around and leave, but a firm hand on her shoulder steered her down increasingly deserted corridors.

"It would be unwise. You will help me obtain the item my master craves. Objection could result in great problems in the near future." His grip became painfully tight now, but he ignored her painful yelp.

The entire scene had not been as unobserved as Quirrel had believed it to be. Evan had watched from a distance, as the Defense teacher walked away with his sister. He could easily see that something was wrong, the reluctance in Rhiannon's steps and her reaction to his grip. It angered the boy to see his sister being hurt, by a teacher no less. He knew he would have to do something. He needed to alert another teacher, someone he could trust. But he knew that his father had left the castle this afternoon, together with Dumbledore for some obscure problem at the Ministry. At least that was what his father had told him before he left. Of course it would be this moment that Quirrel would use. So the number of teachers that Evan would immediately trust with this was considerably short.

He went with his first idea and quickly ran to find his head of house, Professor McGonagall. But the stern witch did not believe him. The last time she had involved herself with the family conflict of the Potters it had caused her nothing but trouble. She had no doubt that this was just once more an attempt of Evan to interfere with his sister's life. She would not help him again, only to be the target of Dorea Potter's wrath once more. The woman used her influence on the Governors very well to cause the teacher nothing but misery. And the mere thought that a teacher would willingly cause the girl harm, especially after what had happened as a consequence of the forest incident, was utterly ridiculous.

So Evan had to leave without her help, only getting severely reprimanded for not staying clear of Rhiannon. So the only thing he could think of now was helping her by himself. Maybe at least his friends would help him, surely they would be willing to.

* * *

"Where are you taking me?" Rhiannon asked snappish as Quirrel guided her through endless dark corridors. They passed the strangest of things, a room filled with flying keys, a giant chess board, a room with another troll, just like the one her brother had face at Halloween. Just where were they going.

"As I said, you will be aiding me and thereby lend much appreciated help to my lord." Quirrel said dismissively. He didn't want to tell her more until they had reached their destination. There was still the unlikely chance that she might try to escape, but in that final room he could prevent that much more easily.

"What makes you think that I am willing to help your lord? I told you that I consider myself neutral. I support neither your lord nor do I support Dumbledore and his ilk."

"You will serve, everyone will eventually. Better show your allegiance to him before it's too late." His answer was the same as the last time. Just what did this man want her to do? Lure her brother into a trap so the Lord Slytherin could get his hands on the Light's chosen one? As much as she loathed Evan at the moment, she wouldn't do that. But what if Quirrel tried to force her to do it?

They finally reached the end of their journey, a large room that was completely empty except for one piece of furniture in the middle.

"The Mirror of Erised! So this is where Dumbledore has brought it." Rhiannon exclaimed in astonishment. Despite her better judgment she had attempted to find it at least once since it had been taken away. She wanted to see her mirror image again, hoping to find something that would help her understand what her innermost desire really is.

"So you already know this particular magical item." Quirrel hummed with excitement. It would make things easier, now he at least wouldn't have to explain to her what this mirror was. He was sure that a Ravenclaw would not help him without knowing as much as possible about the item involved. This house was particularly difficult in this regard.

"I found it inside an abandoned classroom many months ago. I would have studied it further had Dumbledore not interfered." Rhiannon explained absentmindedly. She was entirely focused on the mirror. She had not even realized that Quirrel had let go of her shoulder until she stood nearly in front of the mirror.

"Dumbledore uses this mirror to hide something from my master. A magical artifact, a stone. The mirror is the last clue, but it won't show me where the stone is. It won't show it to anyone who wishes to find the stone for personal gain."

"And you believe that I can find it?" Rhiannon turned towards him, her mind reeling with what she had heard. A carefully arched eyebrow was enough to show Quirrel her skepticism.

"Indeed. It is a chance for the two of us. You will gain yourself the right to remain neutral and I will gain the favor of my master."

"Why me? Why not use a Slytherin student from a dark family? Surely they would love to aid your master."

"They would be the same as me, the mirror would not show the clue to them. Hufflepuffs are too easily scared to be of any use and most Gryffindor's would rather die then betray he light. The division of our world is palpable even here in this school full of children. The rift between light and dark wizards starts here and gets fostered for seven years before the students become adults, then parents only to teach their own children exactly the same morals. An endless cycle that starts here."

"So you chose me because you believe that I am the most likely to be both willing to help and able to succeed." Rhiannon concluded.

"Yes." Quirrel hissed triumphantly. "You are a Ravenclaw, just like I have been in the past. Our house uses logic, not passion, to gain what we want. Now tell me what you see."

Rhiannon looked back at the mirror. For a moment nothing could be seen. Then her reflection appeared. Her mirror self, the older version of herself, dressed in that sleeveless gown with runes all over her arms. Again she was captivated by the sight.

"Stop right there! You will not harm my sister, traitor!" An obnoxious voice yelled from the entrance of the room. Evan had arrived, but alone and obviously dirty from his own encounters in the strange rooms that guarded the way here. "Get away from Rhiannon."

Evan had his wand out and trained at the teacher. He was no fool, he knew he wouldn't be able to beat the Defense teacher in a straight duel. But he was confident, that he knew enough about dueling to put up a long enough fight for help to arrive. His father had prepared him for the case that he had to defend himself and now the time had come to fight. Not for himself, but for his sister.

"You should not have come, Evan." Rhiannon muttered in disappointment. "This is not your place to be."

Evan had been solely focused on Quirrel, his eyes only straying briefly over to his sister. Had he looked, he would have seen the wand in Rhiannon's hand. And he would have seen the stunner she had sent quietly at him.

Quirrel let out a shrill laugh as he saw the so called chosen one drop unconscious before him. Taken out by his own sister no less. A maniacal gleam was now in his eyes as he slowly approached Evan with his own wand trained at the boy.

"Don't!" Rhiannon cautioned the teacher. "Remember, your lord most likely wants to be the one to rid the world of his greatest threat. You would anger him by harming Evan now." Her voice was cold, her face filled with contempt when she looked at Evan. The contempt was real, but her reasons were different. She hoped that Evan would one day appreciate that she most likely just saved his life by discouraging Quirrel. The man had taken several steps back, a shocked look on his face as he realized that she was indeed correct. His lord would have tortured him to insanity for such a blunder. Potter was his to kill, Lord Slytherin had said that more than once during meetings of his closest followers.

"Get the stone. There may be more people coming." He ordered as he regained his composure.

Rhiannon narrowed her eyes on him, displeased with his disrespect, but she did not comment on it. Instead her curiosity drew her back towards the mirror. Her reflection still there, still looking as mystifying as before. A strange smile graced the lips of her mirror image.

Despite her better judgment Rhiannon stepped even closer to the mirror, her reflection now obviously moving on her own. As if it was just another woman on the other side of a window, the reflection stood in front of her side of the mirror, a hand touching the glass, a glowing rune on her palm showing now. Rhiannon reached out, hesitantly at first, but eventually she touched the mirror, her hand now exactly on top of the hand of her reflection.

"Strange..." She said with a mystified voice. "It feels warm... and soft..." She could say no more, when she felt the pull it was already too late.

Rhiannon felt disoriented at first, her head spinning slightly after being pulled into the mirror so rapidly without warning. At least she was sure she was in the mirror now, where else could she have gone to? The pull felt different from a portkey or any other form of magical travel she was accustomed to.

Whereas she was in a dark room in the dungeons of Hogwarts before, she was now on a green field, a bright blue sky above her. But there was nothing else. As far as she could see there was nothing but green and blue.

"It took you longer than I had expected to find me. I had expected, no hoped, that you would have found me years ago. So many wasted years." A dreamy voice said with a slight, girlish giggle, obviously amused by her own words. But Rhiannon could not see anyone. She was still alone... alone with this disembodied voice.

"Who are you? Where are you? Why have you brought me here?"

"My, my. Such a curious mind, but that was expected." The voice whispered in her ear now, but when Rhiannon turned around there was no one standing behind her.

"Show yourself. What gain do you have from hiding your face? Speak to me, face to face."

"Bossy. But that, too, was expected. We are born to rule after all." The voice whispered again. "But since you insist, you may see my face." Rhiannon felt a tingle on her ear as the voice spoke the last words. Again Rhiannon turned around, but this time she was face to face with the owner of the voice.

Face to face indeed, mere inches separated them, their noses almost touching. But Rhiannon did not realize that. She was stunned, her eyes wide, as she looked at the person, the woman before her. It was her mirror image, the older version of herself. Equally emerald green eyes now stared into her own.

"Surprised?" The reflection said with an amused giggle. She reached out with a hand, gently cupping Rhiannon's cheek without any resistance from the stunned girl. "Ah so young, so pure. We were so perfect in the past. We will be again. We are eternal, we have all the time we may need."

"Who are you?" Rhiannon finally gasped out.

"Me? I am you. Just as you are me." Rhiannon frowned slightly in confusion, she hated that feeling, the feeling to not understand something. Especially when it felt like she should know, like it was merely a memory she had forgotten.

"Are you my future self?"

"Past, present, future. It is all the same. The flow of time is nothing to eternal beings like we are."

"Did you bring me here? Where exactly is here?" Rhiannon's stream of questions would just not end. Her mind craved for answers, but she doubted that she would get anything more than riddles.

"Have a look." The reflection said, before she made a wide motion with her hand and summoned something that looked like a large shard of glass. On the other side of the glass Rhiannon could see herself. She stood still like a statue, her hand still touching the mirror, Quirrel pacing worriedly behind her.

"What..."

"I brought you here for a reason. You are already moving on the right path, but you are too slow. Our destiny cannot afford any time for slacking off. We should have met years ago, under different circumstances."

"What do you mean, our destiny won't allow it?"

"As I said. You need to be quick, Rhiannon. We may be eternal, but things are in motion that even threaten our fate." An uneasiness could be seen on the face of the reflection, Rhiannon would even go as far as calling it a fear. A fear of the future? What would await her? What made this being, one that had been so arrogant before, feel like this.

Suddenly the reflection grabbed one of Rhiannon's hand, holding it tight between her own two hands. "The time for you to return is near. That foolish wizard is loosing his patience and might do something regrettable. But you will not leave without a gift. A gift that shall guide you."

A burning sensation suddenly engulfed Rhiannon's hand, a sharp pain unlike any she had felt before. But as quickly as it had come, it had already passed again. When her reflection released her hand, Rhiannon could see what had been done to her. A glowing rune, unlike any rune Rhiannon had seen before, now graced her hand, both on the palm and on the back. It felt warm, a tingling sensation of power emanating from it, before it stopped glowing and became nearly invisible on her skin.

"Find out more about the runes and you will eventually find your path. You have already seen the answer, you just have to remember where to find it." The reflection said before she pushed Rhiannon towards the glass.

"Wait! I still have so many questions."

"All will be answered in due time. And when you remember, we will be as powerful as we had once been in the past. Without stain, without corruption."

"Will we meet again?" Rhiannon asked worriedly. She knew that this reflection would be her best chance to find answers. Leaving it behind to possibly never see it again... she didn't want that.

"You and I are one. You will never be without me again." With a weird smile the reflection pushed Rhiannon against the glass until she could hear it crack. When a splitting sound could be heard, Rhiannon's world went black once more.

Quirrel still paced restlessly, his eyes straying towards Rhiannon's still form every now and then. He didn't know what had happened, but he didn't want to interfere. He needed that stone, he had promised it to his master and failure to keep that promise would result in dire consequences.

Suddenly he heard the sound of glass breaking. It started almost inaudibly at first, but became louder and louder until suddenly the mirror exploded in a spray of shards. Rhiannon, still standing right in front of the mirror, was hit by the brunt of it; shards cutting her face and clothes, leaving bleeding cuts all over her body. She fell to the ground, unconscious, much to Quirrel's exasperation.

The girl was out of commission, his chance to get the stone was lost. It angered him. He had placed great hopes in this girl, but whatever had happened, it did not help him get closer to his goal. Quite the contrary. The little Potter boy had seen him. Of course Dumbledore would believe his golden boy and now Quirrel's allegiance would be in question. He wouldn't be able to stay at Hogwarts like this. Not without being under constant scrutiny. He had failed and all that was left now, was to escape. Now he would have to face his master's wrath.

* * *

Rhiannon slowly opened her eyes, only to close them again when the blinding light of the sun stung in her eyes. She felt tired, weary. She could feel that she was lying on something soft, a bed perhaps? Last she remembered she was face to face with her mirror image. Everything after that was black... Where was she now? The hospital wing, maybe? It would make sense. But who had brought her here?

"Good morning, sleepy head." Someone, a boy, judging by the voice, said next to her. "You've got us worried for some time."

Rhiannon turned her head towards the voice, slowly cracking her eyes open once more. On a chair next to her bed sat Aries, a book about dueling tactics on his lap, a mischievous smirk on his face.

"Aries? What happened?" She felt relieved that it was Aries Black who sat next to her when she woke up. It could have been so much worse. It could have been Gabriel... or worse her father and brother.

"That is something I would like to know. You've been here for three days, not showing any sign of waking up. If you excuse my crudeness, but your aunt is bloody pissed at Dumbledore and the staff. For the second time in only a few weeks your life had been in danger. We nearly ripped Gabriel's head off when he suddenly appeared in the corridor's of the school with your bloodied body levitating behind him."

"Is my aunt still here?"

"No. She comes every afternoon to visit you, but she has left only half an hour ago for today." Aries closed his book and looked intently at the girl before him. His parents had downright ordered him to keep her safe, but for the second time he had failed at that. Just what was going on with that girl, that she got herself involved in such dangerous situations all of a sudden? "Rhiannon, what happened? Why were you hurt like that? And why did your brother leave without even looking at you once they released him from the hospital wing?"

"Quirrel... that foolish man works for Lord Slytherin now. He wanted something that Dumbledore has hidden inside the school. An item... a stone, he said. He tried to coax me into helping him, then he downright forced me to."

"Did Quirrel hurt you like that?" His voice had suddenly become cold, especially as he spoke the name of the missing teacher. All he knew before was that Quirrel had disappeared the same day Rhiannon had been hurt. Of course he would link those events.

"Not directly... he couldn't solve Dumbledore's final clue... he wanted me to do it. It backfired, obviously." She wouldn't tell him the rest. Nothing about her mirror image, nothing about the rune. The less people knew about all that at the moment the better.

_Clever girl, our secrets are not to be shared. _A distinctly recognizable voice whispered inside her mind, causing Rhiannon to groan. She hoped this was just her imagination running wild. Though she wanted answers from her mirror image, she didn't want to have her around all the time. That would be the reason for a lot of headaches. _Ah, we are one, you and I. Past, present and future combined. _The voice said with a chuckle.

"The headmaster will most likely show up soon. I am sure he has his way to know that you have woken up. Be ready for another round of interrogation. Apparently your brother was not very useful for solving the mystery of that day."

"He shouldn't stick his nose where it does not belong." Rhiannon said scathingly. She really didn't need an interrogation now.

"Don't worry. Your aunt will give him hell for doing anything that causes you discomfort." Aries laughed slightly, eliciting even a slight smile from Rhiannon. She was glad he was here.

"Aries?"

"Hm?"

"Thank you, for being here." She didn't look at him, instead she focused on the back of her hand, where the rune was now nothing more than a small bump on her otherwise unblemished skin.

"Don't mention it. I wasn't the only one who came to visit you. Catherine came by quite often. So did some of your other housemates. Adrian and Terence also were here. Well they did mostly to make sure that none of those idiot Gryffindors would come to bother you. Tensions are running high at the moment. No one doubts that it is their fault that you got hurt."

Rhiannon could only smile when she heard that. This school year had changed quite a lot. Last year she had stayed away from others, choosing solitude to focus on her studies. But this year her life had changed, whether she wanted to or not. Though they were few in numbers, she now had a group that she could actually call friends. Friends that even her aunt would most likely approve of. But now she had also secrets that she would have to keep from everyone. Her life had changed, for better or worse, that was unforeseeable.


	10. Chapter 10

**Greetings. Today I present you the tenth chapter of Thaedys story. And this is also the first new chapter he has written in months. Luckily I was able to persuade him to continue writing, so there will be updates for this story from time to time. I still try to get his permission to repost Crimson Vanguard, but so far he really just wishes for that particular story to disappear. Anyway, have fun with this new chapter...**

* * *

_Runes. One of the most complex and at the same time the most difficult of the magical arts. Many of my contemporaries misjudge this art as outdated or even humbug. A gross mistake. For millenia the magical races have developed and refined this art. Learning it is a lifetime commitment; one person can never learn it all. But it would be well worth to try. The possibilities are nearly unlimited. _

_~ Exotic branches of magic – Part XI – Runes, From the Journals of Rowena Ravenclaw~ _

The landscape outside rushed by her window as Rhiannon sat silently in her compartment. Her second year at Hogwarts had ended the day before and now she was on her way home for two much-needed months of vacation. Her aunt had tried to take her home the day she woke up in the hospital wing, but Rhiannon had refused. There were still things she had to take care of, things shad could not do at home.

The rune that was now carved into her palm, she had to find out as much as she could about it. She had great hope to find something about it in Ravenclaw's library, but the countless books on runes yielded no satisfying results. All this knowledge, but the only clue she could find was the name of another old book about Runic Magic. But that particular book was missing. It so happened that the book she sought was the same book Dumbledore had shown her weeks ago. He was the last person Rhiannon would ask for help with this. She did not want him to ask questions she did not want to answer. And the fact that whatever she told him would be shared with her father also deterred her. That man would never be allowed to know her secrets. He had lost all rights to that when he had abandoned her in favor of his son.

Her gaze wandered from the window to the palm of her hand. There, in the center of her hand, she could see the faint outlines of the rune. Almost imperceptible it rested there. Hidden from all those who did not look too closely or knew what to watch out for. But what would the rune do? Would it help her? Would it benefit her in some way or cause more trouble than it was worth? Some people would certainly try to either study or destroy it. She could already hear the headmaster, with his most grandfatherly voice, telling her that they would have to find a way to get rid of it. All for the sake of the Light. It wouldn't do for the sister of the chosen one to tinker around with unknown, possibly dark magic. The Light always had the habit to brand those things as dark which they couldn't understand.

The other people in the compartment watched her carefully, though no one said anything. She had been awkward ever since the incident in the dungeon. Some would have said she was just shocked by what had happened to her. But the fact that he brother avoided her like the plague now confused everyone a lot more.

No one knew what exactly had happened in the dungeons underneath the castle. The students were only told that it involved their former teacher Quirinus Quirrel, Rhiannon and the foolish Gryffindor group that had dubbed itself as the second coming of the infamous Marauders. But no one said anything. Neither Rhiannon nor Evan shared anything about what had happened in the last chamber. The only thing people knew was that the Marauders had been awarded a very generous amount of House Points for their actions. Just enough to win the House Cup, despite the fact that Slytherin had earned the Cup through their own hard work and not through Dumbledore's preference.

Next to Rhiannon sat Catherine, reading some book. Rhia knew that she hadn't been a really good friend to the youngest girl of the Black family, but she had her reasons. But she also was slightly responsible for the younger girl, that much was sure. Had she not befriended Catherine, the girl might have made more friends than she had right now. The only people Cathy ever hung out with outside of lessons were Rhiannon and her acquaintances, much to the chagrin of her father and brother. Of course Sirius Black was angry when he heard that his daughter consorted with Slytherins, especially with her cousin Aries.

Catherine could have avoided that trouble with her family, had she decided to stay away from Rhiannon. But the girl showed a loyalty that made some of the Hufflepuffs look bad and stayed with her. Both girls had found a camaraderie that made them happy.

It was odd for Rhiannon to admit it, but the girl, that had entered her train compartment at the beginning of this school year to escape her idiot brother, had become her first real friend. She wouldn't go as far as claiming that she trusted Catherine enough to share her secrets with the girl, but their friendship would without a doubt grow over the years. It was odd how members of the Black family had intruded upon her life from all directions... Aries, Gabriel, Catherine... even Aries' mother... why were they so interested in her?

Shortly later the train finally entered King's Cross, the end of their travel. Rhiannon was both relieved and stressed out by this. On the one hand she would soon be home. A place where she could relax and plan her next steps without the fear of being dragged into a life threatening situation by her brother, his friends or crazy teachers.

* * *

Nearly two weeks had passed since the end of the school year and Rhiannon sat in her room, looking annoyed as she read a letter. Ever since she had returned she had tried to find out more about the rune on her hand, but none of her attempts were successful. Ravenclaw's journal mentioned runes on several occasions, but it was never very specific. The only clue she had, was Dumbledore's book and that path was out of question for her. So she tried to find another copy of it. Subtly she searched for it, visiting every book store and library within her reach, but none of them had ever even heard about it. She sent out letters to those vendors she could not visit without being accompanied by an adult. None had yielded the desired result... but that changed today. In her hand she held a letter from a traveling merchant her uncle often contacted, when he searched for certain books, potion ingredients or artifacts.

Though the man did not have the book, but he knew a place where she would be able to get it. The only drawback was, that she would have to go the continent to get it. To the Black Forest to be precise, the center of Germany's magical society. She would never be allowed to go there alone. No, she would need her great-uncle to go with her. This would need some skill, to persuade him to do that.

* * *

Young Evan Potter sat quietly in the garden of his home, a far away look on his face, as he once more thought about something that just wouldn't let him go. The events of that night at Hogwarts, the night when he tried to safe his sister from Quirrel.

He was sure that he had seen right. That she had been forced to come along. But why? Why did she stop him? Why did she stun him when he tried to safe her life? He knew that the spell came from her wand. She was the only other person there. Quirrel could not have stunned him, so it must have been her. Was she an accomplice of that man? Worse yet, was she already a follower of the feared Lord Slytherin?

He did not even realize that his mother had joined him, not until she spoke to him, with her soothing voice. "Evan, my dear. Why do you look so glum? It is such a nice day and you shouldn't waste it brooding. Is something wrong?" She looked at her son with worry. He had been awfully reclusive ever since he got back from Hogwarts.

"Its nothing... I guess..." He knew that he could not lie to his mother, no matter how hard he tried. The look she just gave him made it clear that she did not believe him and would not budge until he told her the truth. "It's just... I'm worried, Mom."

"About what, Evan? Is there something you have not told us?" He was hard pressed not to wince when he heard that. She was dead on, it was almost scary.

"It's about Rhiannon... and what has happened in the dungeons." He sighed, as he saw his mother gesture for him to continue. "When I found her she was with Quirrel in that room. She stood in front of the Mirror of Erised, staring at something."

"Do you fear what she might have seen inside the mirror?" Lily asked her son, her expression guarded. She did not know much about her daughter, there was no guessing what she would see in the mirror. Did she see her family, whole and united again? Lily truly hoped so, but she knew that it would be foolish to believe that. But what else would the mirror show her?

"It is not what she saw in the mirror, but what she did..." His mother looked at him even more intently than before. "Mom, it was not Quirrel who had attacked and stunned me that night... it was Rhiannon."

"Are you sure?" Lily asked, her eyes wide in shock. Her daughter had attacked her brother? Why?

"Yes, mom... Do you... do you think that she has completely turned away from us? That she has become part of those who seek to destroy us?"

"No, Evan. I believe there is still a chance for us to become a family again. We must not allow doubts to cloud our judgment. Never forget that she is your sister, not matter what happens. Don't think about what has happened that night... don't talk about this again. It will do you no good." She knew better than to allow James to know about this. He would do something extremely stupid as soon as he started to fear that she might be tempted by the dark. They would need to give Rhiannon time to accept them, but James would indubitably ruin that by acting rash.

* * *

With barely hidden curiosity Rhiannon walked next to her uncle through the crowded streets of Falkenwacht, the biggest magical village in Germany. It was so different from all that she was used to, the way people acted, the way they dressed, their language, so foreign to her ears. But it was fascinating at the same time. The whole place was bustling with life, similar to Diagon Alley on a busy day. But the streets were wider, with timbered houses everywhere. And different from Britain, there were many different magical species around. Goblins, dwarfs and a group of females that must have been Veela, judging by the reaction of the men around them. The most peculiar sight was a fully grown troll, with a collar around its neck, following a wizard like an obedient puppy.

"No matter what you do, Rhiannon, do not cause trouble. These people don't take kindly to strangers causing problems." Charlus lectured, as they walked on. It was an odd sight, he was the only man wearing robes here. All others wore clothes that were much better suited for fighting and working. Though the clothing of the upper class, at least those she believed to be of a higher standing, were nothing short of impressive.

"I will behave, uncle. Do not worry." She assured Charlus.

"I really don't know why you were so intent on seeing the continent, Rhiannon. Dorea was quite displeased." Her uncle muttered. He watched the people around them, mindful of the distrust and expertly hidden contempt, that some people seemed to show. It was obvious that some people still felt some resentment for Britain, even so long after the last war. He was so fixed on watching the people around him, that he did not realize that Rhiannon was no longer following him.

The girl had stopped in front of shop, a clothing shop with a plethora of colorful dresses and gowns. The designs were different from what the shops in Diagon Alley had to offer, but she also knew that he aunt would see most of these dresses as... improper. With a sigh she turned away and ventured on. She felt bad for leaving her uncle without telling him, but she did not want him to ask questions she could not answer. A book about ancient runes, far beyond her current level of education... she would not be able to come up with a proper excuse for that. So she had settled for leaving him for a short time. Long enough to buy the book and find her uncle again, playing the role of the scared little girl that got separated from her uncle.

Soon she found the shop she had been looking for. A rather shady looking place on the outside, an even worse mess on the inside. Countless books, stacked everywhere. No order could bee seen. How anyone could possibly find anything in this chaos was beyond her. The only way to get a book would be a summoning charm... and that only worked when one knew the title of the book. The exact title.

She walked up to the counter, where she could see the only other person in the room. There was an old man, snoring loudly as he slept with his head on the desk. "Excuse me?" She tried to get his attention, feeling slightly stupid for being here. She didn't even speak the language of these people. She had not thought about that little fact. She had to hope that this man would somehow understand her. Maybe he knew some kind of translation charm or anything of that kind. The books she could see were in many different languages and the wizards on the continent traveled far more than their isolated British counterparts.

The man before here stirred, mumbling incoherently, before he looked up from his place. "Was, wo... was willst du, närrisches Kind? Siehst du nicht, dass du störst?" Of course Rhiannon did not understand much of it.

"Excuse me, but I'm looking for a certain book..."

"Sprich Deutsch oder verschwinde. Ich habe keine Zeit um diese mit Taugenichtsen zu verbringen!" He sounded offended, angry even. Rhiannon became increasingly worried about her situation. Maybe she should have stayed with her uncle. Facing his questions would have been better than this. At least he was able to speak German.

"Pass auf wie du mit einer Dame sprichst, du alter Narr." Another, much younger sounding voice, interjected from behind Rhiannon. She had not even heard anyone enter the shop, let alone come near her. But now there stood a young man, his piercing blue eyes staring relentlessly at the old shopkeeper. The old man seemed troubled, almost afraid now.

"Herr Falkenstein! Welch Überraschung, ich hatte heute nicht mit ihnen gerechnet. Wie kann dieser einfache Händler ihnen zu Diensten sein!"

"Zeig der jungen Dame etwas Respekt und bediene sie, so wie du mich bedienen würdest. Du weist was ich sonst tun muss." Rhiannon was amazed to see how this young man ordered the old shopkeeper around. The boy couldn't be much older than her. Two, maybe three years. "He will treat you properly now, do not worry. What is it, that you are looking for?" The boy said with a friendly tone and in surprisingly fluent English.

Too shocked to find the right words, Rhiannon handed him a small note with the name of the book. He took it gently from her hand, reading the note, before he turned back to the shopkeeper. "Hol dieses Buch, sofort." The old man shuffled away without protest.

"Please excuse his obvious lack of manners, he isn't the most likeable fellow around." The boy said to Rhiannon. "Oh and please excuse my rudeness. I have not even introduced myself yet. My name is Tristan Falkenstein, firstborn son and heir of the Falkenstein family." Out of habit Rhiannon offered him her hand in greeting, which he took readily. His fingers felt oddly warm on her skin, as he took her hand and placed a courteous kiss on her knuckles. She had unknowingly given him the hand with the rune engraved on it, so she missed the glint in his eyes when he saw the small outlines on her skin. "May I know the name of the beautiful lady before me?"

Rhiannon blushed slightly, both because of his words and his actions, before she answered him almost meekly. "I am Rhiannon Carys Potter, of the most ancient and noble House of Potter." She almost stumbled over her own words, as he smiled charmingly at her. Oh how she cursed herself at that moment. She acted like one of those empty headed fan-girls at school, that only cared about what their crush thought about them. This was not what she wanted to look like, especially not in front of a stranger, no matter how charming he was. "You have my gratitude for helping me with this... troublesome man."

"It was my pleasure. I can't abide seeing a young lady so grossly mistreated by that measly shopkeeper." The way he talked and carried himself implied that he was from a proper family, possibly even nobility. She vaguely remembered her aunt lamenting, that Britain had abolished its system of nobility, whereas other countries still stayed true to the old ways. Britain only had its pseudo nobility left with the powerful pure blood families. But even their power was limited with the inclusion of halfbloods and blood traitors in the Wizengamot. Tristan's family name was somewhat familiar, though she couldn't point a finger at it. She really wished she had payed better attention to all the times her aunt gossiped about the important families in Europe, when she met with other pure blood ladies for tea or at parties.

The shopkeeper finally returned, with a large tome in his hands. A smile spread on Rhiannon's face when she saw it. Yes, this was definitely the book she had been searching for. The same book Dumbledore had shown her.

"Hier ist es, Herr Falkenstein. In perfektem Zustand, natürlich." The old man said between pants. It was obvious that he had hurried to find it.

"How much will it cost?" Rhiannon asked curiously, feeling more confident, now that there was someone who would be able to translate if necessary.

"Please, take this book as a gift from me, Lady Potter." Tristan said, as he placed a featherweight charm on the book and handed it to her.

"But this book most be worth quite a bit. I cannot possibly accept such an expensive gift." She looked somewhat disbelieving at Tristan. Tomes like this usually cost a lot. Gifts of such worth were only given during a courtship. At least in Britain. She had no idea whether it was different, here in Germany.

"Than take it as compensation for the offense of this man. He is an employee of my family and I would feel terrible to know, that he offended you so, without making up for it." His explanation made sense. Now she knew why the old shopkeeper acted so subservient to Tristan.

"In that case I humbly accept this book. You have my gratitude. Feel assured that I have no ill feelings towards you or your family." Rhiannon said gracefully, as she put the now shrunken book away in her purse."Sadly I must take my leave now, my uncle must be waiting for me. I do not wish to worry him needlessly."

"But of course. I do hope that we will meet again, Lady Potter." His voice held the slightest hint of disappointment, but he quickly hid it with expertly ease.

"I do hope so, Mr Falkenstein. Until next time then." With a last nod she turned around and left the shop. She heard Tristan say something to the old shopkeeper, but she couldn't understand it.

* * *

Back outside, Rhiannon looked around, trying to find her uncle. But it was futile, there were just too many people. The crowd was nearly overwhelming her, as she walked down the street, where she had last seen Uncle Charlus. Surely he must be worried sick. She felt a pang of guilt for doing this to him.

After nearly half an hour of searching, she finally got a glimpse of him, walking down another road. At least she hoped it was him. The person she saw wore a robe and so far her uncle was the only one dressed like that. But he was too far away to see her. She would have called out to him, but years of stern education stopped her from raising her voice in public like that. Running was out of the question, too... she wouldn't run in a dress.

She spotted another smaller and much filthier side alley, which looked like a promising shortcut, that would allow her to reach her uncle in time without making a fool out of herself. It looked shifty, but it wasn't long, so she wouldn't be in there for long. With a sigh she made her decision and disappeared in that alley.

She felt uncomfortable, looking left and right as she followed the dark path. Her nervousness rose, as she heard steps behind her. She quickened her pace as much as possible, not daring to turn around to see who was following her. But the steps got closer and closer. She nearly jumped in shock when someone grabbed her shoulder roughly and spun her around.

Before he stood a bearded man, a haunted look on his face as he stared intently at her. He did not say a word, but raised his wand against her. Fear gripped her, as she slowly stumbled backwards. What did this man want from her? Was he some random mugger? Some sinister dark wizard? Someone who wished ill upon her family? She had no idea what to do, how to get away. She feared for her life, a kind of fear she had never felt before. Her mind went blank with fear when the man mumbled a spell and the tip of his wand lit up with a sickly yellow spell. When the spell left his wand, she raised her hand before her face, hoping to shield herself from harm, despite knowing that magic would not be stopped by such an action.

Time slowed down around her, the spell getting closer in slow motion. And then everything turned black... nothingness surrounded her now. Pitch black darkness everywhere.

"Am I... no, my god no. I can't be dead... this can't be happening." She cried out in panic.

"Of course we are not dead, foolish child." A familiar voice said behind her. Rhiannon quickly turned around, to find herself once more face to face with her mirror image. This strange older version of herself smirked almost mockingly at her. "You cannot die here, I must exist after all." She said smugly.

"Where are we?"

"Inside your mind, silly. Only you can have a mind as empty as this, despite all the knowledge you hid in that pretty head of yours."

"But... why?"

"It is time, Rhiannon. We must awaken. Use my gift and you will not perish."

"Your gift?" Her eyes suddenly widened in realization and she looked at her hand, or more precisely the rune on it. "You mean the rune?"

"Correct. Use it!"

"How?"

"Have you learned nothing about empowering runes? Do I really have to explain everything to you?"

"So I have to channel my magic?" Her mirror image nodded.

"Yes. Now go out there and use that rune or else you will soon see what the next great adventure looks like."

"But what does the rune do?" Rhiannon asked desperately as her mirror image faded away. But the question remained unanswered. Instead she found herself back in the dark alley, the spell only seconds away from hitting her.

"NO!" She yelled out in fear, before the rune on her hand lit up, glowing in an eerily golden color. A barrier formed in front of her. The spell that had threatened to end her life was absorbed, disappearing into nothingness. For a moment Rhiannon could have sworn that she felt the magic of the spell being added to her magic that powered the shield, but that feeling disappeared just as quickly as it had come.

Her attacker looked at the barrier with great surprise. He kicked a pebble against it, but it was stopped just like the spell. Now there was this big, golden glowing barrier hindering him from reaching the girl. He snarled something in frustration, before he raised his wand again. But he didn't get far, as he was struck down by two spells. The first disarming him, the second stunning him.

Rhiannon sighed in relief. Someone had come to help her. She looked expectantly at her sudden savior, only to see the familiar face of Tristan Falkenstein. She didn't know why he was here, but she was grateful none the less. Somehow she couldn't bring herself to believe that he would harm her in any way.

"Lady Potter, are you alright?" He asked worriedly as he got closer to the barrier. The golden barrier finally collapsed as Rhiannon let out a relieved sigh.

"I... this man, he..."

"Don't worry, he will no longer be able to harm you. I won't let him." He stated it with such insistence, that Rhiannon couldn't help herself but believe him..

"Rhiannon!" Suddenly she heard her uncle. His voice full of worry. He looked slightly pale and weary as he got close enough to see that it was really his niece in this alley. "Oh my dear girl, are you alright?" He came closer, his hands on her shoulders as he looked at her, searching for any sign of harm. But luckily he found none.

"I... I'm fine, uncle. I got lucky... Mr Falkenstein saved me..." She purposely omitted the fact that she had used a strange rune of unknown origin. No one really had to know about it. She just hoped that Tristan would not spill anything. Apparently he was the only one who had seen the barrier.

Charlus looked at the young man his niece was referring to. "Falkenstein? Are you by any chance related to Wilhelm Falkenstein?"

"My late grandfather, yes."

Charlus nodded in recognition. "Anyway, I have to thank you for saving my niece from a terrible fate. The house of Potter owes you a debt of gratitude."

"Please, sir, you do not owe me anything. I only did what every good man should have done. In fact it shames me, that your niece was attacked in my family's city. I am terribly sorry for that." Rhiannon's eyes widened when she heard him say that. It wasn't his apology, but the fact that he said that this was his family's city.

"You can't be held responsible for the actions of such people. My word still stands, we owe you a debt, Mr Falkenstein." Charlus was a proud man and when he felt indebted to someone, he would repay that person.

"If you insist, there is one thing I would like to ask of you." Tristan said. "Would you allow me to write your niece. I believe it would be beneficial for all of us." He looked at Rhiannon as he said that, his deep blue eyes staring into her own.

Charlus seemed baffled for a moment, before he agreed. It wasn't a big request, but a curious one none the less. That he asked for his permission to start a correspondence with Rhiannon, was a proper way for anyone to start a possible relationship with the daughter of a pure blood family. Just what was this boy after? And Rhiannon said nothing to rebuff the request, despite knowing what intentions the boy might have.

"You have my permission." Charlus said evenly. Tristan smiled satisfied when he heard that.

Tristan took this permission as a sign of good faith and took a step closer to Rhiannon, before he took her hand and repeated his earlier action. Again he placed a kiss on the back of her hand, only this time it was on the rune. An obvious sign that he had not only seen the barrier, but the glowing rune as well. It was a silent statement. He knew, but he wouldn't tell... for now.

* * *

**A\N: So another chapter is done. It is odd, there have been nearly 8 months between chapters 9 and 10, but at long last the story will continue. And he was quite insistent on not including any translations for the German parts of this chapter. Oh well, as long as he continues writing... Don't worry, I will give Thaedys enough reasons to continue this story. So until next time... cya**


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